Real-Life Love
Caitríona Balfe, David Berry & More ‘Outlander’ Stars and Their Real-Life Love Stories
Since Outlander fans first tore through the pages of Diana Gabaldon’s books in the 1990s, they have been infatuated with Claire and Jamie Fraser’s love story and everyone else in their orbit.
When Starz adapted the series for television in 2014, it made sense that audiences would immediately find themselves rooting for the many couples, as played by the actors on screen. But the Outlander cast doesn’t have a history of dating each other, no matter what fans dream up in their heads.
In most cases, the cast is largely private about their off-screen romantic lives. But who have some of them found love with in real life? We got to the bottom of it!
Outlander, Season 7, Fridays, 8/7c, Starz (Midnight on the Starz App and On Demand)
Caitríona Balfe and Tony McGill
In the eyes of Outlander fans, Claire Fraser’s heart belongs to Jamie. But in real life, her portrayer Caitriona Balfe’s heart belongs to Tony McGill, a music producer, record label owner, and band manager out of London. Like Balfe, he is Irish, so our condolences to everyone who wanted her to end up with a Scot. The happy couple have been together since at least 2016 but have managed to keep their relationship out of the public eye, even as she continues to be part of one of the most beloved couples on TV. Balfe and McGill were married in a private ceremony in 2019 in the U.K. and quietly welcomed their first child, a son, in 2021.
In the past 10 years, since Outlander became a TV phenomenon, Balfe has constantly batted away questions from fans wanting her and Sam Heughan to date in real life. But talking to Parade in 2018, she said, “I think things are pretty clear now that I’m engaged to someone else.” Something tells us even that won’t stop some people from shipping them.
David Berry and Kristina Tesic
Much of Lord John Grey’s love life in Outlander has been spent pining for Jamie Fraser, the man he can’t have. But David Berry hasn’t had such a problem. Since 2012, the Australian actor has been married to Kristina Tesic. They have managed to keep their marriage very private, but Berry did speak to the Daily Telegraph in 2017 about how his mother-in-law is the one who convinced him to audition for the role of Lord John because she was a fan of Gabaldon’s books. Upon getting the part, he went to Glasgow to start filming and nearly didn’t make it back for the birth of his and Tesic’s son, Alexander.
Graham McTavish and Garance Doré
Fans didn’t know how much they missed Dougal McKenzie until he popped back in for an episode in Season 7 Part 2 of Outlander. But that doesn’t mean Graham McTavish hasn’t been busy since Dougal took his exit back in Season 2. McTavish has appeared on HBO’s House of the Dragon, and in 2023, he married Garance Doré at Borthwick Castle in Scotland. The couple told Vogue they met on the dating app Raya and dated for about a year and a half before getting engaged in Edinburgh in 2022. McTavish was previously married to New Zealand filmmaker Gwen Isaac, with whom he has two children.
Richard Rankin and Sammie Russell
Richard Rankin‘s alter ego Roger McKenzie has traversed time for his love, Brianna (Sophie Skelton). But Rankin himself currently has his sights set on someone else: Sammie Russell. The fashion designer behind Dream With Me has been seen at numerous events with Rankin since they started dating in 2023, mostly recently at an Outlander premiere.
Sam Heughan
While Jamie Fraser has only had his eyes set on Claire since he met her in 1743, Heughan is still on the lookout for his Sassenach in real life. As recently as this year, the Scottish actor was seen out and about with a still-unnamed woman. He was previously linked to model Monika Clarke and Into the Woods actress MacKenzie Mauzy, and a few other women over the years. But so far, he has yet to marry — though he has never been short on beautiful women at his side, on and off screen.
Sophie Skelton
Brianna, the daughter of Claire and Jamie Fraser, has some big shoes to fill in terms of romance. Skelton, meanwhile, is wasting no time getting out there to find her own love story. For years, she was linked to actor Jeff Gum (Rambo: Last Blood), but they have reportedly gone their separate ways. For now, she is still looking for her Roger McKenzie.
