Martin Freeman secretly marries actress Rachel Benaissa after six years together

Martin Freeman has married his long-term partner Rachel Benaissa after six years together.

The actor and Benaissa made a rare red carpet appearance at the London Film Festival on Wednesday night (October 14), where they were pictured looking cosy together.

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 14: Martin Freeman and Rachel Benaissa attend the "A Long Winter" Gala during the 70th BFI London Film Festival at The Royal Festival Hall on October 14, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Lia Toby/Getty Images for BFI)

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Freeman, 55, began dating Benaissa, 34, in 2020. The actress has appeared in BBC drama Normal People, comedy series This Way Up and Netflix film Irish Wish.

The pair played John and Mary Watson alongside Benedict Cumberbatch in the BBC detective drama, before separating in 2016.

Abbington previously said long periods spent apart while filming had contributed to the breakdown of their relationship.

Freeman attended the "A Long Winter" Gala during the 70th BFI London Film Festival

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She has since become engaged to escapologist Jonathan Goodwin, 43, who uses a wheelchair after a stunt went wrong while filming America's Got Talent: Extreme in 2021.

Freeman has largely kept his relationship with Benaissa out of the spotlight, but offered a rare insight into their life together during an appearance on Jessie and Lennie Ware's Table Manners podcast last year.

Freeman has kept his relationship with Benaissa out of the spotlight

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Speaking about Benaissa's love of food and wine, he said: “She’s not a Cordon Bleu… she’s a massive cheese and wine w****.”

He added: “That’s what she would say about herself.”

Freeman continued: “She says that about herself, ‘I’m a cheese and wine w****’. It’s not all she is, but no, she loves all that stuff. We like cooking.”

Freeman went on to star as Dr John Watson in Sherlock

Freeman went on to play Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit film trilogy and Mr Poppy in the Christmas comedy Nativity!.

His other screen credits include the Marvel film Black Panther, crime drama The Responder and the dark comedy Breeders, in which he also served as an executive producer.

Freeman has received numerous accolades throughout his career, including a BAFTA for his performance in Sherlock and an International Emmy for The Eichmann Show.