This real-life Secret Service couple starred in Line of Duty and Happy Valley: 'A dream come true'
They've been together for 18 years!
Secret Service stars Mark Stanley, who you should recognise from Trigger Point and Happy Valley – but did you know he’s been in a long-term relationship with one of his co-stars?
The new ITV drama, based on a book by Tom Bradby, follows MI6 agent Kate (Gemma Arterton) as she investigates whether or not there’s a Russian mole in the UK government.
Stanley’s Ryan Walker, an aspiring, charismatic politician hoping to become Prime Minister, is her prime suspect.
Even though you may not know him by name, he’s an undeniable star of primetime British telly. However, this marks his biggest on-screen collaboration with his real-life partner, who’s also a recognisable actress.
Mark Stanley and Rochenda Sandall star in Secret Service together
While Stanley plays Walker, Rochenda Sandall portrays Melissa Morris, his political advisor.
If you’ve noticed their crackling chemistry, there’s a good reason: they’ve been in a relationship for 18 years!
Rest assured, they’re not quite as adversarial off-screen and in real life. “We love each other. It’s wonderful. Truthfully, we love working together,” Sandall said during an appearance on The One Show.
“It’s nice that she is working for me in some sort of a way,” Stanley quipped, while insisting it was “great” to play off each other.
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“We had some great days, didn’t we? You know, we’ve been together 18 years, so it’s like, you know, we split every penny down the middle from the moment that we met each other,” he said.
“You know, being picked up and ferried off to work and looking at each other doing very sort of intense and what we believe to be high calibre writing, directed by Oscar winning directors and that kind of thing. Sometimes you do nothing but burst with pride.”
How did Mark Stanley and Rochenda Sandall meet?
While speaking to The Guardian in 2020, Sandall explained how left her small village at the age of 17 to pursue her dream of becoming an actress.
She secured a place at East 15 Acting School… and this is where she met Stanley. They started dating in 2008, and they’ve been together ever since.
They generally keep their relationship private, apart from the odd red carpet appearance. Plus, Secret Service technically isn’t the first time they’ve worked together: they starred in Netflix’s Criminal and the BBC’s Love, Lies and Records.
However, they share the screen a fair bit in Secret Service. “It’s a dream come true,” Sandall said on The One Show.
“And just for the team to facilitate it as well, we’re very grateful, very, very grateful every day.”
Stanley also joked: “Well, we’re breaking up after this show, this is just to plug it.”
What have Mark Stanley and Rochenda Sandall been in?
Stanley is a true stalwart of British TV. In this year alone, he played opposite Mia McKenna-Bruce in The Lady, ITV’s drama about Fergie’s killer ex-dresser, Jane Andrews. He also starred in Sky’s underrated Under Salt Marsh alongside Rafe Spall and Kelly Reilly.
In 2025, he had a small, important role in Adolescence, one of the best shows on Netflix.
Notably, he played the despicable Rob Hepworth in Happy Valley series 3. You may have also seen him in Trigger Point, The Bay, and Game of Thrones.
Sandall will be best known for her role as Line of Duty villain Lisa McQueen. She’s also appeared in Small Axe, Doctor Who, and Hijack, and she’ll reprise her role as Fi in Amandaland season 2.
