Absolutely Fabulous ran from 1992 to 2012, before heading to the big screen for the 2016 movie.

It may have been six years since Ab Fab fans last saw Joanna Lumley star as Patsy, but this role is by far what she is still best known for.

The 76-year-old star is still acting today, recently appearing in Motherland and Finding Alice and is now the first guest judge on the latest season of RuPaul's Drag Race.

Throughout it all, she has had her partner, Stephen Barlow, at her side, with the actress first crossing paths with him when she was just 21 years old.

Fans have always been curious about the relationship, with Stephen mainly keeping away from the camera.

Here is everything you need to know about Joanna’s relationship with Stephen.

Who is Stephen Barlow?

Joanna Lumley married Stephen Barlow in 1986 (
Image:
Getty Images Europe)

Stephen is a 68-year-old conductor and musician that studied as an Organ scholar at Cambridge University.

He has primarily worked within the opera, but from the years between 2011 and 2018 he was the Artistic Director of the Buxton Festival.

Joanna first heard of Stephen when he was just 13 years old, while she was 21.

Speaking to The Mirror, the she explained how she met him 10 years later at a wedding, and "got the strongest feeling we should be together," but that there was "no romance".

Stephen Barlow is Joanna Lumley's second husband (
Image:
Daily Mirror)

Stephen went on to marry someone else, and Joanna "felt it was all wrong". Their relationship was obviously meant to be, because his marriage broke down, and one day he invited Joanna out for tea.

The date went well, and they married two years later, in 1986, and almost 36 years later they are just as close as ever.

After knowing one another in their younger years, it was only during a friend’s wedding that they hit it off.

Joanna was 31 at the time, with the actress looking back at their chance encounter saying: "I felt like I'd had a kind of electric shock; it wasn't a matter of falling instantly in love, it was the impact of a colossal shock, completely memorable."

Stephen added: "Jo looked amazing in a turquoise coat. I'd never seen anything so glamorous and statuesque.”

The couple have remained independent throughout their marriage, with the two still pursuing their creative careers.

When they are apart for their travels, phone calls are not an option, as they prefer to communicate the old fashioned way.

Speaking to Women’s Weekly, Joanna said: "I tend to keep in touch with postcards because I’m old-fashioned.

"We write notes to each other every day. Some of them are about simple things, like: 'Don’t forget to take something out of the freezer for dinner!', but some are more meaningful."

Before Stephen, Joanna was briefly married to Jeremy Lloyd in the 1970s.

Her relationship with the ‘Allo ‘Allo! star wasn’t meant to be though, as their married only lasted from 1970 to 1971.

Does Joanna Lumley have children?

Joanna Lumley has one son (
Image:
Getty Images)

Joanna and Stephen do not share any children, but the actress does have one of her own.

Jamie Lumley, sometimes known as James Lumley, is Joanna’s 54-year-old son from a previous relationship.

He has two children of his own, making Joanna a grandmother.

It is believed Stephen doesn’t have any children of his own.

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