Joanna Page, the British actress best known for Gavin and Stacey and The Crown, has offered a remarkably candid look at her 23-year marriage to actor James Thornton. in interviews with New Magazine and The Daily Mail, Page described a relationship that mixes 'wild abandoned sex' with years of sleeping in separate beds, frequent bickering, and a deliberate effort to make time for intimacy between parenting four children. while the couple rarely projects a 'lovey dovey' image , Page insists their shared goals and humour have kept them together through what she calls 'pretty rubbish' periods.

The 'wild abandoned sex' that fills a five-minute window

According to Page's interview with New Magazine, the couple prioritises mornings when their youngest child, Boe (age four), is at nursery and the other three children—Eva, 13, Kitt, 11, and Noah, nine—are at school. 'James and I will turn to each other and say, let's just try and grab five minutes, let's quickly have some wild abandoned sex,' she said, adding that they might then have lunch at the local pub. the actress explained that co-sleeping with Boe means she and Thornton barely spend evenings together, so they seize daytime opportunities.

Four years in separate beds and a husband's 'Northern, measured' temperament

In a separate interview with The Daily Mail earlier this year, Page admitted that parts of her marriage have been 'rubbish' and that she spent four years sleeping in a separate bed from her husband.. She attributed clashes to their contrasting personalities: Thornton is 'quite slow, and northern and measured,' while Page describes herself as 'manic and hysterical next to him and very impulsive and fiery.' The actress said they have 'massive arguments' and are rarely affectionate, but that they've 'grown on the same path' because their core goals and morals align.

Why the 'Gavin and Stacey' star says marriage requires 'hard work' and humour

Page did not sugarcoat the difficulty of a long-term relationship. 'If you're going through 26 years of marriage like me, it's not always going to be wonderful, it's going to be pretty rubbish,' she told The Daily Mail. She criticised what she sees as a modern tendency to separate at the first sign of trouble, advising: 'Be prepared, you have to work at marriage, don't give up at the first sign of hard work.. Always be kind and have a good sense of humour.' The report notes that Page and Thornton met on the set of the BBC costume drama David Copperfield in 1999 and married four years later.

How their podcast 'Lush!' became unscheduled couples therapy

The couple now co-host a podcast called Lush!, which Page says has forced them to sit down and talk. She described one session where they arrived not speaking to each other after an argument, but left connected. 'It was like couples' therapy,' she told New Magazine. The podcast has no topic restrictions, and Page mentioned one episode where they discussed 'all the things that are better than getting back into my marital bed after four years of sleeping with Boe.' According to Page, Thornton was initially nervous about the format but has become more relaxed, and the regular conversations have strengthened their bond.

Open question : How sustainable is a 'five-minute' model for long-term intimacy?

The source does not address whether Page and Thornton's approach—snatching brief moments of sex while co-sleeping with a four-year-old—is a temporary arrangement or a long-term solution. It also leaves unexamined how their children might be affected by hearing their parents' frank public disclosures, though the actress says nothing is off-limits on their podcast. The report relies entirely on Page's own account; Thornton's perspective on the marriage, the separate beds, or the 'wild sex' routine is not included.