Former Prime Minister Liz Truss has hit the headlines after releasing her book Ten Years to Save the West, which details her short-lived experience in office and her resignation after just 49 days. In one confession, she stated her husband Hugh O'Leary, whom she previously described as the"love of my life", could not get an Ocado delivery into Downing Street and their "spontaneous excursions were all but impossible" thanks to the high levels of security.
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The Conservative MP, 48, and the accountant tied the knot in 2000 and have welcomed two children during their marriage, but not much is known about Hugh. Aside from Liz's affair, which came to light in 2006, the British politician has kept her love life largely private. However, Hugh was thrust into the spotlight during their time at Downing Street. Take a look inside Liz's marriage and her rarely-seen husband…
How did Liz Truss meet her husband?
Liz met Hugh – who attended the London School of Economics – at the Tory Party Conference in 1997 when she was 22, and she drew on her love of winter sports when it came to choosing their first date. "I invited him ice skating and he sprained his ankle," she told You Magazine.
The minor injury didn't deter Hugh, as the couple went on to get married in 2000.
When did Liz Truss get married?
With her desire to keep her relationship out of the spotlight, Liz has not shared any details or photos of her big day. However, she has been spotted wearing a diamond and gold engagement ring on her left hand, and the couple will be celebrating their 24th wedding anniversary this year.
It's reported that she purchased her three-bedroom family home in Thetford, Norfolk, for £180,000, which she shares with her husband and their two children, Frances and Liberty.
While Hugh was pictured cheering on his wife as the news broke that she had beaten Rishi Sunak in the run for Prime Minister in September, their marriage has not always been smooth sailing. Liz allegedly had an 18-month affair with fellow Tory MP Mark Field in 2005, after the then-Shadow Minister for London was assigned as her political mentor.
Mark's 12-year marriage ended following the affair, which was revealed in 2006, and while Liz and Hugh remained together, it almost changed her career forever – local party members wanted her to be deselected as the Conservative candidate for South West Norfolk in 2009 after learning of her relationship with Mark.
According to the BBC, she said at the time of the row: "It’s been public for some years now. I am really sorry about that (affair). It’s a mistake I made and as far as me and my husband are concerned it’s water under the bridge.”
What have Liz Truss and her husband said about her affair?
Both Liz and her husband have made it clear they do not wish to address her infidelity or go into details about their marriage. "I am really happily married," she told You in 2019, just weeks after she shared a very rare photo of Hugh on Instagram to mark Valentine's Day.
Next to a snap of the couple posing at Blagdon Hall at what appears to be a wedding, she wrote: "Love of my life. #happyvalentinesday."
Hugh also told the Daily Mail: "I don't want to talk about it."
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