Sally Nugent has been waking up Britain on BBC Breakfast since 2021. Millions of viewers know her face, her voice, and her style of interviewing. What they don’t know much about is her personal life, and that is entirely by her own design.
Since her marriage ended in 2023, Sally Nugent’s relationship status has remained unconfirmed. As of February 2026, no credible media outlet has reported that she is seeing anyone new.
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The 13-Year Marriage to Gavin Hawthorn
Sally was married to Gavin Hawthorn, a businessman, for around 13 years. The couple had one son together, born in 2008, who Sally has always kept firmly out of the public eye. Her official BBC Breakfast biography described him simply as “a football and rugby mad boy.”
In one of the few personal things she ever shared publicly about her marriage, she told S Magazine that when their son was born, Gavin bought her a vintage aquamarine ring from an antique jeweller in Richmond, London as a “blue for a boy” gift. That single detail, small as it is, shows just how little she let the cameras in over the years.
The family lived together in a four-bedroom home in Hale, Greater Manchester, a short drive from BBC Breakfast’s studios at Media City in Salford.
The Separation: May 2023
In May 2023, the MailOnline reported that Sally and Gavin had gone their separate ways. A source close to the couple told the publication:
“It’s very sad but they are no longer together. I think they tried to tough it out for quite a while as they didn’t want to split up if they could possibly help it for the sake of their son, but they clearly couldn’t make a go of it.”
The separation was described as amicable. Gavin moved out of the family home. Sally stayed on with their son.
When reporters turned up at her door for a comment, she gave them five words: “I’m not going to say anything, thanks.”
She went back to work. No statement. No interview. No on-air mention. Those five words remain the full extent of her public comment on the matter.
One detail worth getting right here: no credible UK news outlet has ever confirmed the legal divorce was finalised. Wikipedia still lists Sally as married to Gavin Hawthorn, noting only the separation. What happened legally after May 2023 has never been made public.
What She Did After the Split
Sally did not retreat. Days after the separation was reported, she was on a mini-break with BBC Breakfast colleague and close friend Carol Kirkwood, posting on Instagram Stories with the caption: “I do love a mini break.” Weeks later, she headed on a sun-soaked holiday with former BBC Breakfast colleague Steph McGovern, posting simply: “Special people. Special place.”
By the end of 2023, she had signed up for the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special, dancing a foxtrot with professional partner Graziano Di Prima. She scored 38 out of 40 from the judges, one of the highest marks on the night, finishing just behind the eventual winner.
Her reason for doing it came through in one Instagram post: “I was in need of a little pick me up when the lovely people at Strictly called.”
She said nothing more about it. She did not need to.
Sally Nugent’s Relationship Status: Where Things Stand Now
Since the separation, Sally has not been photographed with a romantic partner. She has not confirmed she is seeing anyone. Her social media, across Instagram and X, is almost entirely focused on her work.
In November 2024, during a live BBC Breakfast discussion about Coleen Rooney leaving her children to enter I’m A Celebrity, co-presenter Jon Kay joked that the idea of getting away sounded “brilliant.” Sally, who has been raising her son alone since the split, replied in two words: “Not me.” It was a small exchange, but one of the clearest public signals of where she is right now.
In August 2025, Sally turned 54. Jon Kay marked her birthday publicly, writing: “Happy Birthday to my brilliant, clever, kind and funny friend.”
In December 2025, she fronted one of the year’s most watched BBC documentaries, “Sir Chris Hoy: Cancer Courage and Me”, which aired on BBC One on 18 December. The film followed Sir Chris Hoy and his wife Sarra through his terminal cancer diagnosis. Sally described it on X as: “a love story.”
As of February 2026, not one credible publication, including Hello! Magazine, MailOnline, The Mirror, or The Sun, has linked Sally Nugent romantically to anyone since her separation.
So, Is Sally Nugent Currently in a Relationship?
Based on everything publicly known: no new relationship has been confirmed.
Sally Nugent has spent over two decades building one of the most respected careers in British broadcast journalism. She has approached her private life with the same discipline she brings to the 3:45am alarm, the overnight briefing notes, and the live interview that cannot be rerun.
She answered a reporter’s question with five words in May 2023, and has said nothing since. Whether she is privately seeing someone is something only she knows. What three years of public record makes clear is that she has no intention of telling anyone.
Last updated: February 2026
