Googlebox’s Giles Wood and Mary Killen have been married for thirty years, and were only at the tender age of 21 when they first fell in love.
Coming across as well to-do, sharp, witty, and utterly adorable, the dynamic duo became one of viewers’ favourite pairings on the Channel 4 series.
One reason was fans became utterly enthralled by the stars’ incredibly wacky surroundings.
While many of the other contestant’s backgrounds were often preened, serene and uncluttered, Giles and Mary appeared to live in the complete opposite of that.
Jammed in to what seemed to be the couple’s study rather than their living room, they are towered-over by shelves and shelves of books.
Their seating options are a pair of worse-for-wear 70s style armchairs, and Mary’s in particular is lined with something akin to wallpaper.
Decor choices aside, the pair’s fancy farmhouse in the countryside is often the location for some fascinating telly-watching opinions, and fans wouldn’t have it any other way.
As it turns out, Giles and Mary have an interesting life off-screen too, so here’s everything you need to know.
Who are Giles and Mary?
Giles was a young lady of 21 when he was studying at Wimbledon art school and came across the stunning Mary, who was working as a model at the time.
The pair fell in love, and soon decided to tie the knot, having now been married for over three decades.
For most of their relationship, the couple have resided in their Gogglebox cottage and brought up their children there, while now also filming for their Channel 4 gig.
Outside of their roles on the show, Giles and Mary both have successful careers in writing, and the former is also a talented artist.
Giles writes for The Oldie, and journalist Mary also contributes to The Spectator.
The blonde star also published her own book How the Queen Can Make You Happy in 2012.
Giles and Mary’s eccentric home
On the outside, Giles and Mary’s fabulous house sits in the middle of the countryside and features plenty of quaint chocolate-box village features.
The red brick home comes complete with a thatched roof, three chimneys and lots of small square windows adorning the walls.
On the front of the building, an old-style slatted black wall adjoins the roof, and the couple seem to have renovated the property and added a large black cross window pane at some point.
The home features large back and front gardens, with plenty of contrasting-shaped trees to add to their wild vibe – and of course some privacy given their new celebrity-status over the last six years.
The couple’s home also features a patio door, a traditional garden bench, and and some creeper foliage up the side of one brick wall.
But while the pair’s grand surroundings seems to fit in keeping with their “posh” attitude on Gogglebox, things aren’t all rosy behind the scenes.
Speaking to The Telegraph a few years ago, Giles and Mary shared that the property was in dire need of some repair works.
They told the publication that the paint had started to peel off their ceilings, they had no central heating, and had even had to create their own version of double glazing with some bubble wrap.
The couple called their abode “The Grottage”, and also revealed that their kitchen was covered in mould.
Giles and Mary’s relationship
Despite an undoubtedly solid partnership the pair have built over decades, Giles and Mary certainly like to bicker like the married couple they are.
Fans are regularly enthralled by their hilarious comments and snipes at the other while they put the world to rights on the latest TV shows of the week.
Giles and Mary have also been known to call each other nutty on occasion, which is an adorable pet name that originates from their own highly-strung personalities.
Mary once explained: “We call each other ‘nutty’ because we both consider the other to be a bit mad.
“Certainly Giles has multiple personality disorder so he’s all sorts of people and one of them is a bit of a genius,” she told The Daily Star.
“The truth is we’re both neurotic,” Mary added.
Giles and Mary’s children and family life
The long-time married couple have two grown up daughters together, whom are largely kept out of the limelight and don’t live at home anymore.
While the couple’s children have never made a guest appearance on their parents’ hugely-popular reality show, the truth is the show could have been very different.
When Giles was first approached to take part in the programme, one of his daughters was tapped to join him on the armchairs every week.
When she changed her mind at the last minute, panic ensued and Giles managed to convince the show’s producers to have Mary instead.
Following a phone call with his wife, Giles was successful and the iconic Gogglebox pairing was born.
Who knows if Giles and his daughter would have had an even funnier rapport on-screen?
For one thing, Mary once told The Guardian their daughters were very strict against their father’s naughty ways.
They even banned Giles from swearing in the house while they still lived there, according to Mary.
“There’s so much on telly, I don’t want it in my own cottage,” Mary told the publication.
“Giles swears occasionally because he’s always having minor accidents. Our children turn on him and tell him off. Poor Giles.”
Gogglebox airs Fridays at 9pm on Channel 4.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
