Stephen Fry addresses criticism on 20-year age gap with husband Elliot Spencer with blunt response
Stephen Fry has addressed criticism over his 20-year age gap with his husband, Elliot Spencer.
The 68-year-old actor, comedian and writer recently appeared on ITV's The Assembly, a programme which sees big-name celebrities being interviewed by a panel of autistic, neurodivergent or disabled individuals.
Fry, who tied the knot with 38-year-old Spencer back in 2015, was asked about the decade-spanning age gap during the segment.
"What do you say to people who don’t like age-gap relationships?" one individual asked.
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Offering his candid response to critics, he said: "I feel a bit sorry for them… I don’t see why they should have such an opinion about things, but the only thing that matters in a relationship is love."
Speaking about relationships in a more general sense, Fry continued: "And, if you feel it, and it’s felt on both sides, and it’s not an exploitative relationship."
He added: "I would say to people that in our relationship, Elliot has all the power, really. He makes a lot of the decisions about things, because I trust him to.
"It just works for us extremely well, and if people don’t like it, well, sod them."
Fry met comedian Spencer at a house party back in 2012. They announced their engagement just a few years later, in 2015, and tied the knot 10 days after the proposal.
Last January, Fry took to social media to gush over Spencer following their 10-year anniversary.
"Ten happy years to the day since we were joined in marriage. I’m a lucky man," Fry wrote on Instagram at the time.
Speaking on The Jonathan Ross Show last March, Fry revealed it was love at first sight with Spencer.
"We met at a friend’s house, and I knew pretty much straight away that this was someone I wanted to spend, what I considered, the rest of my life with," he said.
Fry, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at age 37, previously opened up about how his husband 'saved his life'.
Speaking in a 2016 interview with The Sun, he shared: "I think just the happiness and security and calm of being with him. I am in a great place right now.
"My physiologist Billy, has been astonishing, and the medication has also saved my life after finally getting it right."
Fry was knighted in the 2025 New Year Honours and was recognised for his services to mental health awareness, the environment and charity.
Topics: Celebrity, Sex and Relationships
Rhiannon Ingle