They’ve been married for over 20 years however Brian Cox and his wife Nicole Ansari didn’t have the smoothest of starts to their relationship. 

The couple, who tied the knot in 2002 and share two sons Orson Jonathan and Torin Kamran, met eight years before they eventually had their first date. 

Appearing on the week’s Dish podcast with hosts Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett, Brian, 78, and Nicole, 56, revealed how they first met and how Nicole left the Succession star feeling like a d***head. 

Speaking on the show, Brian explained the pair met for the first time in 1991 in Hamburg when he was performing in King Lear.  

Meeting at a party after the show he admitted: ‘So, what happened was that, there was a party arranged after the show, and there was this rather vivacious young woman with lots of… hair. She’s still got a bit of it…’

Describing how the couple hit it off he said: ‘And we talked for, I don’t know, for hours. And I thought, wow, this is amazing, this is incredible.’

Brian Cox has revealed how he waited eight years for his first date with his now wife Nicole  after she left him feeling like a ‘d***head’ in a Milan restaurant in 1991 (pictured last month)

The couple tied the knot in 2002 and share two sons Orson Jonathan and Torin Kamran, but Brian was originally left looking like an ‘idiot’ after they first met (pictured 2003) 

Yet it wasn’t the fairytale story he hoped as Nicole was already in a relationship at the time. 

He continued: ‘And then it turned out that she was having a relationship with another actor in the company, as she does, I mean, they do.’ 

Later the pair met in Milan where Brian falsely ᴀssumed Nicole had come to visit him. 

‘So I was in Milan, and she turned up in Milan and I thought, “oh!” And I got up, it was in a restaurant, and I got up and I [thought] “She’s come for me.” Like an idiot, you know? 

‘And everybody came in and I felt like a d***head, you know, because I stood up going, “Oh,” and it wasn’t the case.’

Nicole confirmed: ‘But I saw him, and my lover was behind me, and I thought, oh, I’ve come for him, not for him.’ 

Explaining how the two then crossed paths eight years later, it was Nicole who made the first move. 

Brian explained: ‘Then what happened was eight years later, I’m on Broadway doing Art, playing an Art, and I got into the theatre late.

Appearing on Dish together he said: ‘So I was in Milan, and she turned up in Milan and I thought, “oh!” And I got up, it was in a restaurant, and I got up and I [thought] “She’s come for me.” Like an idiot, you know?’

He added: ”And everybody came in and I felt like a d***head, you know, because I stood up going, “Oh,” and it wasn’t the case’ 

Read More Brian Cox shares a sweet kiss with wife Nicole at The Score press night after party

‘I came in and Jerry, the stage doorman said, “Hey Brian, You got a note. This broad left this note last night. She’s got a note that’s it’s up there in your cubby hole, that’s the note.”

‘So I rang the number, and it was where she was staying, and of course it was before mobile phones. So I said, “Well, can you tell her?” and she said, “Oh, she’s on the other line.”

‘Then just as that happened, somebody came and said, “You’ve got a no-show tonight, you’ve got a ticket.” 

‘So when I spoke to Nicole, I said, “There’s a ticket. You can come to the show tonight if you want”.

‘So she ran all the way and she got a ticket, and so what I did, very cleverly….I pulled the card. I took a tango dancing that night. 

‘I was hopeless as a tango dancer. I thought I’d try my luck anyway. So she came and that was it…’

Previously Brian has admitted that their marriage hasn’t been without trying times, and they suffered a make or break evening in Texas two years into their romance, where Brian declared that either they needed to split or get married.

He said last year: ‘We went to the Little White Chapel in Vegas the next day. That was 24 years ago. It was great fun and that’s been our relationship ever since.’

Previously Brian has admitted that their marriage hasn’t been without trying times, and they suffered a make or break evening in Texas two years into their romance (pictured 2020)

Nicole also confessed their relationship has faced struggles, as she claimed there were ‘four years of pure hell’, which was aided by therapy. 

She said ‘Our 25 years together have not been a fairytale. We had four years that were pure hell. We went to couples therapy and it helped a lot. 

‘He was always willing to work at it. Because after that first burst of falling in love, inevitably every relationship has moments where you have to decide: is this worth my time.’

In 2023 the couple renewed their wedding vows in a surprise Vegas ceremony. 

Dish from Waitrose is available on all podcast providers.