All About Caitriona Balfe’s Husband, Tony McGill
Outlander’s Caitriona Balfe has been with her husband, Tony McGill, for close to a decade, but he is rarely seen out with the star at red carpet events. In an interview on The Late Late Show in 2018, Balfe stated, “He’s a very shy person and doesn’t like much talking about him.”
The actress has also been dealing with the fascination some fans have with her relationship to her co-star Sam Heughan, who has been playing her love interest on the hit show since 2014. While they clearly have great chemistry, they’re only friends. In 2022, Balfe told Vanity Fair that there are people who still insist she and Heughan really are together, despite her wedding ring.
“It’s sad, because you meet the loveliest people who are fans of the show, and they’re super supportive and they do the nicest things—and then you have that little thing, which just taints it,” she said.
But there are still a few known details about Balfe and her marriage to McGill.
Who is Tom McGill?
Both Balfe and McGill are Irish, according to E!. He doesn’t seem to have a public social media profile anywhere but is reportedly a music producer and owns his own record label in London. He and Balfe live there part time, but he also travels with her to Scotland when she is shooting Outlander. In 2021, she told The Wall Street Journal, “Today, my husband, Tony, and I and our son are slightly nomadic. We split our time between Glasgow and London. When I’m working on Outlander, we’re in Glasgow.”
How did he and Balfe meet?
In her appearance on The Late Late Show, Balfe shared, “I met him through one of my best friends. Which I think is the best kind of introduction you can get.”
How long have they been together?
In January 2015, a friend, actor Donal Brophy, shared a video of the pair together in which Balfe plays a flute for her friends at a bar—while sitting in McGill’s lap. The video was deleted, but they made an appearance together in 2016 at the Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony for Jodie Foster, per Marie Claire.
In 2018, Balfe wore her engagement ring to the Golden Globes, telling People, “It happened over the break. I’m very happy.”
You can see her ring here:
The couple was married in August 2019 at St. Mary’s Church in Bruton, Somerset. Though she never shared any public pictures, Balfe told The Philippine Daily Inquirer in 2020, “What was most beautiful about it is that I had my very close family and friends there.”
Heughan appeared to attend the special ceremony, sharing a picture of his wedding suit soon after.
Have they made any other public appearances as a couple?
The pair has only a handful of photos together at red carpet events. In 2017, they attended the 12th Annual Oscar Wilde Awards in Los Angeles.
In February 2018, they were at the Grey Goose Vodka BAFTA Award’s after-party.
In 2019, they were among a crowd of celebrities enjoying Wimbledon.
And that same summer, they were at the Audi Henley Festival.
Balfe brought McGill as her date to the 92nd Annual Academy Awards as well.
In November 2023, she also took him to a special screening of Leave The World Behind in London.
Do they have any children?
On Aug. 18, 2021, Balfe and McGill welcomed their first son. The actress had never announced she was pregnant, but she shared a black-and-white photo of her son’s fist. She shared a thoughtful caption about becoming a parent.
“I’ve been off socials for a while as I was taking some time to enjoy cooking up this little human,” she wrote. “We are so grateful for this little soul ….that he chose us as his parents. I’m in awe of him already and can’t help stare and wonder at all the possibilities of who he will become, where he will go and what he’ll do on the big adventure of his life.”
She added that she felt enormous gratitude to have welcomed her son into a safe part of the world in privileged circumstances, and asked followers to donate to charities that raise funds for children all over, including UNICEF.
“When you have a kid, you become really protective,” Balfe told Vanity Fair about keeping her son’s life private as well. “I don’t want those crazies—because that’s what they are—I just don’t want them talking about him.”