Russell Tovey has made a name for himself with roles in the Doctor Who spin-off series, The War Between the Land and the Sea and Gavin and Stacey among others. While he’s staying busy acting, off-screen, the British actor, 44, has kept his private life much more out of the limelight. In fact, you might be surprised to learn the actor, who is openly gay, was actually engaged years ago.
Read on for all you need to know about the actor’s private life off-screen – including his turbulent engagement and his current relationship status.
He got engaged to his longtime partner
Russell’s love life has been the source of much speculation. The star, who is openly gay, had a longtime relationship with fellow actor, Steve Brockman, known for Steelers: The World’s First Gay Rugby Club. The couple reportedly began dating in 2016 and even got engaged in 2018, with Russell telling the Daily Mail at the time they were “very, very happy”.
However, just months after announcing their engagement, they had called it quits. The pair briefly broke up, with Russell even going as far as selling his engagement ring. In a 2020 interview with The Telegraph, the actor admitted he gave the money he got from selling his ring to his brother to spend on a family trip to Disney World. “I gave him the cheque and said, ‘Spend this on sweets.’ I didn’t want the money, I just wanted a big exorcism.”
However, about a year after their split, Russell and Steve were back on. When asked if they were engaged again, Russell said honestly: “Well, I don’t know how it works. Because we were, then we broke up, now we’re back together. Is it like Snakes and Ladders? Do you go back to the beginning of the game and have to work your way back up again?”
© Dave Benett/Getty Images for TheHis relationship status in 2025
Russell got back together with his boyfriend Steve in 2019. However, during a podcast appearance in July 2025, the actor reportedly confirmed he is now single. Russell opened up about the drawbacks of dating as a celebrity while on fellow actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s podcast, Dinner’s On Me. “It’s not hard to meet people at all. I’m very social,” he said.
“It’s a weird scenario when you date and you’re in the public eye. And you sit down and they know who you are. They can find out that information, and your question is more, ‘Sorry, what’s your name again?’.” He continued: “It’s a real imbalance with dating. But boo-hoo, it is what it is. It’s just something you have to get your head around.”
He also spoke about wanting to have someone to share his life with but noted, “finding that in yourself is equally important”. He added: “And that’s the journey we all go on, when you can be your own boyfriend and your own champion and your own witness.”
On being a role model for the LGBT community
Russell has been open about his sexuality from the early days of his career, and over the years has played several gay characters on-screen, including Daniel Lyons in Years and Years and Andrew in Plainclothes.
Russell has spoken in the past about his parents struggling to accept his sexuality. His dad had a particularly hard time with it, taking years for him to come to terms with his son being gay. “He was scared about what my life would be like,” Russell explained to The Times, admitting his dad had suggested hormone treatment initially.
© Getty Images“Growing up, I was so desperate to find my safe space and my community,” he told The Independent about his experience growing up as an actor in the LGBT community. “I was lucky enough to be working as an actor and I met my people, who thought and felt like me – or, if they didn’t, they still gave me respect for being the way I was.”
But speaking to Attitude, Russell opened up about his thoughts on the title of “role model”. The star explained that one thing that “really stuck” for him was when Laverne Cox said she wanted to be a “possibility model” instead. “People need mentors and people need to know there’s someone else in the world who’s like them so it’s less scary and they have ‘possibility models’,” he told the outlet in 2020.
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