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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Sam Elliott

Bill Bailey's family life from impulse wedding to cute reason behind son's name

As any Strictly Come Dancing winner will tell you, hoisting the Glitterball aloft is just not possible without the support of your family.

So in the year of Covid, Bill Bailey needed the backing of his loved ones more than any other champion who came before him.

As you would expect, the eccentric funnyman requires someone alongside him who really keeps him on his toes.

Bill was drawn to wife Kristin Bailey's "wild spirit" when they got together more than 30 years ago.

They first met at one of Bill's comedy gigs in 1987 when she was running a bar in Edinburgh where he was reeling off the jokes.

He said of her: "She had a very distinctive style. She had this long brocade coat, and I realised she was a free spirit and did her own thing.

Bill's rock Kristin has been on the journey with him - and they married on a whim (Ealing Times)

"We ended up chatting away, and all went to a party, and she put me up on her sofa."

Just over ten years later, they were married. But was in a planned occasion with every little detail taken care of while being arranged to perfection?

Not quite. They got hitched on a total whim.

Kristin and Bill married on the spur of the moment while travelling in Indonesia bak in 1998.

Little Dax was named after a kid they met while travelling (Getty)

In an interview with The Independent in 2009, the comedian explained: "We were travelling around Asia and sailed into a place called Banda, with a beautiful lagoon, and a smoking volcano on one side and a Dutch colonial fort, an old church and the remains of a little town on the other.

"So we decided to get married there and then."

Proud Kristin appeared on It Takes Two to pay tribute to Bill to explain what makes him who he is.

She told viewers: "He's a wonderful father, husband and a bit of a genius. Watching Bill dance is thrilling - when Bill gets a bit between his teeth he goes for it."

Their only son was born in 2003 and they all live together in Hammersmith, London.

As you would expect, David or John was out of the question. They named him after a child they met on their travels.

Dax arrived and completed their family and the teen says he couldn't be prouder.

Bill laughed: "Contrary to popular belief, Dax is not named after a Star Trek character. The name came from a friend of ours who married an Indonesian man.

Bill with Dax (right) and a friend pictured in 2014 (WireImage)

"They had a son called Dax and we just always associated it with being in Indonesia and always said, 'If ever we have a child, that'll be in the running'."

Dax is very proud of his dad and he said on the show: "When I was young, dad was my role model. When I grow up I aspire to be him."

Bill's niece Uisce also appeared on It Takes Two and said the family can't believe how well he has done.

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