She was one of the UK’s biggest soap stars and made headlines after lifting the glitterball trophy at the height of her career back in 2010, but now Kara Tointon’s lifestyle is boating on fjords, catching fish and nature walks with her two boys.
Despite rumours in 2022 that she had split from her fiancé Marius Jensen, the pair have put their troubles behind them and last year quit the UK for the peaceful Nordic countryside with their sons Frey, six, and Helly, four.
Her Instagram grid is all friluftsliv – the Nordic concept of being outdoors in all weathers – as opposed to the old glitz and glam of life in London where she was embroiled in a number of showbiz relationships with co-stars from EastEnders and Strictly.
Yet behind the scenes the former EastEnders actress has been undergoing a series of health issues, as she revealed yesterday when she opened up about her choice to undergo a preventative double mastectomy last year after learning she carries the ᴅᴇᴀᴅly BRAC1 gene.
The operation comes six years after the tragic death of her mother Carol who died of ovarian cancer back in 2019, just a few months after Kara welcomed her first child.
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How Kara Tointon turned her back on the UK for a quiet life in Norway after her mum’s tragic death, a tumultuous love life and secret split from her fiancé
Despite rumours she has split with her fiancé Marious Jepsen, the pair have put their troubles behind them and live together in the peaceful Nordic countryside
Kara explained she was invited for genetic testing at the time of her mother’s illness as their is a history of cancer on both sides.
And since her mother’s pᴀssing Kara has retreated from the limelight and left London all together as she put her life back together after a series of heartbreaks.
Kara first shared the news of her mother’s pᴀssing in a heartbreaking Instagram post back in 2019 as Carol was seen doting on her children in throwback footage.
Kara simply captioned the clip with the words, ‘My mum,’ as her friends rushed to offer their condolences.
A few months later the star took to social media once again to pay tribute to Carol as she shared her overwhelming sadness.
The post read: ‘I miss you. I miss your voice. I miss your smile. I miss your smell. I miss your hug. I miss your jokes. I miss how you made me feel. I miss your everything.’
She added: ‘God I was so lucky muma. Do laugh that I’m reaching out to you on INSTAGRAM. I love you.’
Kara has revealed she wants to give her children Frey, six, and Helly,four, an idyllic childhood away from the spotlight that’s followed her for so many decades
Kara revealed on Wednesday she hade undergone a double mastectomy after learning she carries the ᴅᴇᴀᴅly BRAC1 gene following her mother’s death from ovarian cancer
Her mother Carol died of ovarian cancer back in 2019, just a few months after Kara welcomed her first child (pictured)
Since her mother’s pᴀssing Kara has retreated from the limelight and left London all together as she put her life back together after a series of heartbreaks
A few months after her death the star took to social media once again to pay tribute to Carol as she shared her overwhelming sadness
Read More Kara Tointon is praised by celebrity pals for making ‘brave decision’ to have double mastectomy 
Kara had welcomed her first son Frey with her fiancé Marius Jensen in November 2018, just a few months before her mother’s pᴀssing.
She previously revealed she had put off setting a wedding date due to her mother’s illness.
Speaking to Hello! after Frey’s birth she confessed: ‘We are hoping next year, perhaps in Norway or maybe in London.
‘My mum hasn’t been too well over the last year or so and I want her to be able to enjoy it.
‘Seeing her with Frey and dealing with everything she has to right now is overwhelming and I couldn’t be more proud. I just want her to be back to herself again. That’s our priority.’
However tragically her mother never got to see her walk down the aisle and the couple are not publicly known to have ever officially tied the knot.
After welcoming their second son in January 2021, split rumours then encircled the pair and it was believed they had parted ways.
According to reports in October 2022 the pair were believed to have split in early 2022 after realising there was ‘no future for them as a couple’.
Marius was even spotted sharing a kiss with an unidentified woman outside a London club in snaps obtained by The Sun.
A source told the publication at the time: ‘Kara and Marius quietly separated around 10 months ago.
After welcoming their second son in January 2021, split rumours then encircled Kara and her fiancé Marius Jensen and it was believed they had parted ways (pictured in 2019)
Kara and Strictly professional Artem Chigvintsev dated from 2010 until 2013 after meeting together on the BBC show
Kara dated Joe Swash from 2008 until 2010 after they met while playing brother and sister Mickey Miller and Dawn Swann on EastEnders back in 2005 (pictured in 2009)
‘There was no wrong-doing on either side, and they both still care about each other. But they came to the decision that there was no future for them as a couple.
‘They remain friends, and are both very committed to co-parenting their two children.’
Kara never commented on the split, but in September 2024 it was revealed the family were living together in Norway, where her fiancé is originally from, and had seemingly overcome their troubles.
Kara and Marius went public with their relationship in 2017 after meeting the year before following her split from Strictly professional Artem Chigvintsev.
The pair met while dancing together during the series in 2010, making it all the way to the final when they lifted the glitterball trophy.
After a three year romance the pair split in 2014 after Kara told The Telegraph’s Mandrake column: ‘We are not together. We’re fine, but we aren’t a couple any more. The reason I haven’t spoken about it is because I hate reading about myself in that way.’
Rumours about their relationship coming to an end begun to circulate in the December of 2013 when they hadn’t been pictured together in months.
Since their split Artem relocated to California with his now ex wife Nikki Bella.
The pair have since divorced and the Russian dancer moved out of the marital home he shared with Nikki after his arrest, which took place in August, when he was arrested on suspicion of felony domestic violence.
Charges were dropped a month later due to lack of sufficient evidence, according to the Napa County District Attorney’s Office.
Prior to her relationship with Artem, Kara dated Joe Swash after they met while playing brother and sister Mickey Miller and Dawn Swann on EastEnders back in 2005.
Kara also dated Busted star James Bourne from 2004 until 2005. Their relationship ended shortly after the band split up (pictured in October 2004)
After Joe left the soap in July 2008, the pair stayed in touch and had just started dating when he flew to Australia for I’m A Celeb in November 2008.
Their relationship came as a surprise after the actress swore off dating famous men following her romances with EastEnders co-star James Alexandrou for a year and Busted rocker James Bourne before that.
But her and Joe split in 2010 with Joe later admitting he was an ‘idiot’ to let her go, blaming himself for ‘abandoning’ her when she was struggling to find work after leaving EastEnders.
Yet her tumultous love life is now behind her and Kara has ditched the UK for a life in Norway with her family.
The mother-of-two had previously said that after the birth of her first born she wanted to avoid the busy nature of London and it seems now the family of four are enjoying a quieter paced life.
While Kara travels to London for work, her Instagram shows pH๏τos of with her kids in the outdoors as well as fishing trips with Marius.
In an interview with Weekend Magazine last September Kara admitted she was ‘just hitting her stride’ at age 41 as she opened up about wanting to give her children an idyllic childhood away from the spotlight that’s followed her for so many decades.
She explained: ‘I’m really enjoying getting older. I know we’re in a world where people grapple with that but I feel like I’m learning to like myself more and hopefully becoming a more well-rounded person.
‘A lot of the stuff people struggle with is down to circumstances – everyone has bad stuff happen to them and that can happen at any age.
While Kara travels to London for work, her Instagram shows pH๏τos of with her kids in the outdoors as well as fishing trips with Marius
Kara revealed that after having several medical investigations, she decided that surgery was the best option for her and her family
‘I think experience means you know how to deal with things and hopefully grow and build and get stronger from it.’
Speaking how the move to Europe wasn’t what she expected she said: ‘I never expected to make a life here but I am loving it.’
‘We’re bringing our kids up in Norway together. Being here is still quite new, it’s early days, but it’s working out really well. We thought we’d see how it goes, but so far so good.
‘We spent most of last year in Norway as a base, I was going back and forth for work, and then we just decided to give it a go. It happened really naturally as we were spending more and more time over here. It’s so easy to get back to London and it just seems to work.
‘It’s such a beautiful country and a great place to bring up children and I’m definitely adapting to the Scandinavian lifestyle.’
On Wednesday Kara took to Instagram with a candid video as she shared she underwent the procedure, along with having her fallopian tubes removed as a preventative measure, after learning she carries the ᴅᴇᴀᴅly BRAC1 gene.
As an ambᴀssador for the Eve appeal, a charity that raises awareness of gynaecological cancers, the actress opened up to her followers about the journey that led to her discovery that she carries the BRCA1 gene.
She explained: ‘Last year having had my second son in 2021 and deciding that our family was complete, I underwent two preventative surgeries.
‘The first a double mastectomy and the second a two part protector study, a trial.
‘They believe that ovarian cancer begins in the fallopian tubes so by removing them first checking out you can remove the ovaries later.’
Kara revealed that after having several medical investigations, she decided that surgery was the best option.
‘We are finding out more and more about personal genetics and most people believe in surveillance, but after doing this for a couple of years, having MRIs, waiting for biopsy, we decided that this was the right decision for me and my family,’ she said.
‘I wasn’t an easy decision, but one I am very glad that I made and I can now with hindsight talk about it properly.’
What is the BRCA gene and how does it affect people’s risk of cancer?
Having a mutated BRCA gene – as famously carried by Angelina Jolie – dramatically increases the chance a woman will develop breast cancer in her lifetime, from 12 per cent to 90 per cent.
Between one in 800 and one in 1,000 women carry a BRCA gene mutation, which increases the chances of breast and ovarian cancer.
Both BRCA1 and BRCA2 are genes that produce proteins to suppress tumours. When these are mutated, DNA damage can be caused and cells are more likely to become cancerous.
The mutations are usually inherited and increase the risk of ovarian cancer and breast cancer significantly.
When a child has a parent who carries a mutation in one of these genes they have a 50 percent chance of inheriting the mutations.
About 1.3 per cent of women in the general population will develop ovarian cancer, this increase to 44 percent of women who inherit a harmful BRCA1 mutation.
