Ruby Wax, 72, is back on TV screens for I’m A Celebrity. The comedienne is known for her acting and writing, as well as being a fierce advocate for mental health, for which she was awarded an OBE in 2015. But while she’s away in the Australian jungle, the star will surely be missing her family back at home. In her private life, Ruby has been married for 37 years to her TV producer husband Ed Bye. She’s also a mother to three children, with two of them following in her footsteps to join the world of entertainment.
Read on for all you need to know about Ruby’s private life as she takes on the Aussie jungle.
Marriage to producer Ed Bye
Ruby has been married to TV producer Ed Bye for nearly four decades. The star had been married twice before tying the knot with Ed in 1988. Ed is a British film and TV producer and director, with credits including Kevin and Perry, the sitcom Red Dwarf and Bottom: Hooligans Island Live. He’s also worked on a number of Ruby’s shows such as Don’t Miss Wax and The Full Wax.
The couple met in the ’80s when Ed was directing the actress in her sitcom Girls On Top. In an old interview per The Independent, Ruby said she “didn’t think he was interested in me” when she worked with Ed. “It was Joan Greenwood who said ‘Eddy loves you,’ and I said ‘Get out of here, Joan.’ She said ‘Oh no, you must go out with Eddy,’ so as a favour to Joan I started to get interested.”
© Dave Benett/WireImageRuby Wax and Ed Bye in 2018
Writing for The Guardian she recalled: “When I met Ed Bye, in 1988, I wasn’t expecting to find my happy-ever-after. I asked Ed if he wanted to marry me, told him I had an opening in my calendar, and gave him a date. I said many men were after me, but I was lying.” The couple got married in May 1988 and have been together ever since.
In 2021, she opened up about their long-lasting marriage. Ruby told The Sun’s Fabulous magazine that their relationship is “unconventional”. “I have my friends, he has his friends. I don’t assume we have the same tastes. It’s understood we both have different careers. We’re together but we have different tastes and jobs – and that’s OK. We don’t step on each other’s toes and I don’t really see myself as Mrs Bye.”
She has three children
Ruby has three children
Ruby shares three children with her husband Ed: son Max, 37, and daughters Maddy, 35, and Marina, 32. The couple welcomed their eldest child Max in 1988. They then had daughter Maddy in 1990, followed by their third child Marina in 1993. In October, Ruby shared a post to her Instagram revealing her son Max is off to Washington.
Her daughters both work in comedy
Ruby Wax with her daughters Maddy and Marina
Ruby’s two daughters have both followed in her footsteps to become comedians. Maddy and Marina have their own podcast called Siblings Comedy. While you’d think the sisters might go to their mum for advice, that’s not the case. Writing for The Mirror in 2020, Ruby said: “Even though my daughters are comedians they don’t ask for my advice – in their eyes I know nothing. They do spot-on impressions of me. Max is a coder. The dinner table conversations we have are just hilarious. I hope I’ve taught them to be adventurous.”
Along with working in comedy, Marina has also dabbled in acting. She notably appeared as Pandora Henry in the thriller series The Girlfriend and has credits in We Were the Lucky Ones and the 2017 film Breathe, starring Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy.
