Sarah Beeny’s wild teen romance ‘terrified’ her family, but now he’s her husband

Sarah Beeny was 18 years old when she met Graham Swift and moved in with him two weeks later. And 30 years on, they’re still going strong

Sarah Beeny and her husband Graham Swift are a force to be reckoned with, having built a fortune and TV empire together during their 30 years together.

But when they first meet as teenagers, things don’t look very promising – at least as far as her parents are concerned.

After leaving the company in hopes of becoming an actress, 17-year-old Sarah began traveling the world after being rejected by drama school.

The experience, she said, left her feeling ‘lonely and seasick’, and when she returned to the UK she had to juggle odd jobs, selling vacuums and starting a sandwich business. .

At just 18 years old, she spent her weekends researching the real estate market, hoping she could make some money. She then meets Graham through a rather unexpected route.

Just a week before that, her brother, Diccon, started seeing a girl named Caroline, and he suggested that Sarah might want to get to know Caroline’s brother.

Sarah wasn’t disappointed with her brother’s intention to date her brother’s girlfriend, but once she clapped her eyes on him, she quickly changed her mind.

Everything moved at breakneck speed, scaring their family.

“We were really young – he was 18 and I was 19. We moved two weeks later and we bought an apartment together about three months later,” she told The Sun.

“I look at 18-year-olds now and think, ‘God, if they come home and say they’re buying an apartment together, I’d be horrified’.

“I don’t blame them for that feeling, but it makes me take young people’s relationships more seriously than others might.”

They went on to form a property development business with Diccon, before Sarah landed her breakout gig on Property Ladder in 2001.

She and Graham married in 2003 and have children Billy, 15, Charlie, 13, Rafferty, 11, and Laurie, 10.

But despite being together for more than 30 years, the couple still refuses to say they love each other, at all costs avoiding the saying ‘I love you’.

Sarah previously explained: “When we first met, when he was 18 and I was 19, we joked about people meeting and saying the word ‘love’ after two and a half seconds – when they just say it because they want to s**g you.

“It became a constant joke and as a result we couldn’t say it to each other.”

But, she added: “When he wasn’t looking, I told the kids I loved him. And I’ve heard them ask if he loves mummies. He looked at me and gritted his teeth and said, “Yes, I love your mother very much.” So funny.

“I wouldn’t know what to say if he told me he loved me. I’m not good at those things. Graham used to say it was a good thing he wasn’t romantic because I accepted that. “

Together, the couple and their family starred in Beeny’s Restoration Nightmare, followed by a quest to restore the Grade II-listed Rise Lobby in Yorkshire. Most recently, they filmed New Life in the Country about their attempt to leave London and build a carbon-neutral home in Somerset.

And even though Sarah stands in front of the shows, she says it’s Graham who is the real force.

“I joked about the divorce because it was funny, but it’s unlikely I could have done anything I did without Graham. I’m not the rock to him for support – he’s the rock while I hang around,” she said before.

“We are partners a lot in business and in life. He’s my best friend and it’s always fun to be with someone you get along with and understand well inside and out. “

* Sarah Beeny’s Little House, Big Plan, airs tonight at 8pm on Channel 4