Countryfile star Matt Baker's life off-screen - from rarely seen children to meeting wife

Wales Online

26-04-2025

Countryfile star Matt Baker's life off-screen - from rarely seen children to meeting wife
Matt Baker is a familiar face on TV screens, but what is his life like when the cameras stop rolling?
Matt Baker has been a Countryfile favourite for over 15 years, joining the show in 2009. He's also been a familiar face on the BBC, taking on various co-presenting roles, including the iconic children's programme Blue Peter in 1999, where he starred alongside TV legend Konnie Huq for several years before leaving.
Viewers will also remember him co-hosting The One Show with TV star Alex Jones until he departed from the network in April 2020. Around the same time, Matt launched his own production company, Big Circus Media, with the aim of transitioning from in front of the camera to behind it.
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However, he's back doing what fans love most, presenting Channel 4's Our Dream Farm with Matt Baker.
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The show has already become a big hit with viewers. The eight-part series, which began this April, sees Matt partnering with the National Trust to find a new tenant for a 600-acre farm located in the picturesque setting of Eryri, North Wales.
Each week, audiences watch as seven applicants compete, demonstrating their ability to handle a range of complex farming challenges for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take over the farm, reports Gloucestershire Live.
While we've come to know Matt quite well as a TV personality over his two-decade-long career, less is known about his life off-screen and his home life.
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Married life
Matt Baker with his wife and co-star Nicola are childhood sweethearts
(Image: ITV )
Matt Baker married his childhood sweetheart, Nicola Mooney, in 2004. The couple live in a picturesque Hertfordshire Chiltern Hills farmhouse with their two children.
Matt and Nicola have a long history that predates their marriage. They first met in 1997 at Pier 39 in Cleethorpes, where Matt was performing in a disco show at the age of 20.
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Heartfelt admission
Matt Baker says he wouldn't be where he is without his wife
(Image: ITV )
As for Nicola's profession, she works as a physiotherapist and is also the author of the Whistledown Farm Adventures series. Matt has often expressed gratitude for her support throughout his career.
In a 2011 interview with the Express, he mentioned: "I'm so lucky that I met my wife Nicola before any of this telly lark started. He added: "I knew way back then she was the one, and I don't think I could have done all this without her."
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Rarely-seen teenage children
Matt, wife Nicola and two children Luke and Molly
Matt and Nicola have two teenage children, Luke, 17, and Molly, 15, who prefer to keep a low profile and avoid the public eye. Although Matt frequently talks about his family in interviews, they are rarely featured on his social media accounts. However, he has mentioned that they play a significant role in managing the family farm.
On the Countryfile website, Matt maintained a daily diary showcasing his two children assisting with tasks such as marking sheep with a spray can and feeding the animals.
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In 2020, when Matt decided to leave The One Show, he revealed that his decision was motivated by a desire to spend more quality time with his family at home. He shared with BBC One viewers: "Most of all, I'm looking forward to spending evenings with my wife Nicola, and finally getting to put my kids to bed."
'Not being needed'
Matt struggled with not being needed by family
(Image: Mark Taylor )
Last year, during an appearance on The Mid Point with Gabby Logan podcast, Matt opened up about his home life. He confessed to grappling with the reality of having two teenage children who were becoming increasingly independent.
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He expressed: "I think that's the thing with mid-life, your children become so capable that you're not needed in those same ways anymore, you cheer from the sidelines, you become their biggest supporter.
"But you're not needed in the same ways, so what're you going to do?" In the same interview, he went on to share how this phase of his life had brought him closer to his parents, who now required his assistance and support in their later years.
Our Dream Farm with Matt Baker airs every Saturday on Channel 4 at 6pm.