Jack Whitehall lifts lid on 'rogue' relative banned from his £250k wedding

Tying the knot with model and actress Roxy Horner at Wiltshire’s 17th century Euridge Manor estate in April, at a cost of £250,000, the cheeky Brit Awards host admits his humour made guests blush. Wearing a bespoke Tom Ford suit, while Roxy, 35, had two couture Galia Lahav gowns at £16,000 each for her big day, Jack referenced having daughter Elsie, two, “out of wedlock.” He says: “The joke stinks out the entire marquee.” Claiming his wife, who is from Essex, was in the driving seat for the wedding planning, Jack - whose estimated worth is £11 million - continues: "We had a ridiculous wedding and it was so over the top. Roxy wanted invitations hand-drawn by a calligrapher and delivered by a peacock. "I was like ‘what's wrong with a WhatsApp group?’ We had a nine tier wedding cake. I just wanted Colin the Caterpillar but she shot that down." Speaking to fans at a Milton Keynes gig ahead of his 26-date Bad Influence UK tour, starting in January, Jack, 38, says he also banned a “rogue uncle” from his wedding. The funnyman, whose family home is in West London’s Notting Hill, says: "He is bat shit. He got banned from Ramsgate Wetherspoons.” Despite poking fun at his humanist wedding, Jack says his life feels complete since marrying Roxy, who he met in 2020 during a trip to Australia. Previously linked to actresses Gemma Chan and Kate Beckinsale, he adds: "Seeing Roxy become a mum and flourish, I have never been so sure that this is the person that I want to do life with. With my insecurities, being with Roxy and my daughter feels like breathing out." Back in jokey mode, he adds: "I am a dad now. It is wild. My baby came early, really early... by about five years. The birth of my child has to be the most stressful and one of the most physically demanding things I have ever had to do. I had to sleep in a chair. It is amazing the resilience of the male body." But he admits: "It was obviously harder for my wife.” Joking aside, Elsie’s arrival had a massive impact. Jack says: “As soon as I saw my daughter it was undignified. I was crying like Rylan at judges’ houses on X Factor.” And he says fatherhood has made him a changed man. He says: "Having a baby has changed me. I thought it would be easy as I had my dad to go by, but he set the bar drastically low. It is a lot to get your head around. "It is a big shift in your life. The biggest change is that there is another person in your world, another human being in your house. But having my daughter is the best thing that has happened to me in my entire life. I don't know what I would do without my nanny though." Jack’s 2027 arena tour, taking in cities including Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Cardiff and a giant gig at the O2 in London, will mean time apart from his family. And he admits that, as he approaches 40, he finds it harder to travel light. He says: "I am nearly 40. I am really struggling. "It does not work for me being middle aged. I am the impish Peter Pan figure. I play students on television. I can't be middle aged. My body is trying to reverse the ageing process. It is much harder to age if you are a beta male. My wash bag these days is like a magician's trunk. It is full of potions, lotions, peptides, serums and beard mascara. I have a whole pharmacy in there now. I have a pill for everything." Obstinate when it comes to exercise, he adds: "I do cardio, but nobody cares that you run a 10K or a 5k. I don't want to join your running club or watch anyone run online. I hate these people who say they have just run a cheeky 5K. There are only two things that should be cheeky... pints and Nandos." For the past few years, Jack has spent time in LA, trying to crack the US, with roles in Hollywood movies such as Clifford the Big Red Dog and Jungle Cruise, alongside Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in 2021. Of trying to make it in the US he says: “I don't even know why I am still trying to do that. I don't want to live in America. They don't find me funny. My sense of humour bombs in America. I have also been quite insecure about my physique. I had body dysmorphia and bulimia in my 20s. In Los Angeles, I have a whole load of body expectations. "In LA, every man is ‘Love Island good looking’. You have body expectations to get in shape. I had to take my shirt off in a film next to The Rock. That does wonders for your self esteem.” And when he did work out for a part, Jack says no one watching him in films believed his body was real. He says: "I tried to rig up for a role for a film which had a sex scene in it. I did the training and was on a strict diet and not drinking. I got into the best shape that I have ever been in, but the problem was that the body I had was still attached to this head. So nobody thought it was real. Everyone thought it was AI." But for now, Jack says he is just enjoying every minute of newly married life, even though he says he and Roxy argue and make up like any other couple. He adds: "Roxy had a really difficult pregnancy. She struggled with breast feeding. You watch this person you love crumble in front of you. so you cling on to any life raft that you can. What I find helpful is free therapy - seeing other couples argue in public. I say ‘look Roxy, they are more miserable than us’". *Jack Whitehall's new UK tour Bad Influence starts in January. For tickets visit www.jackwhitehall.com