The pair, who famously played shy stand-ins John and Judy in Love Actually — a couple who fell in love while filming nude scenes — appeared side by side again for the first time in over 20 years, sending viewers straight into nostalgia overload.
Host Alex Jones couldn’t resist pointing out the moment, teasing that it was a full Love Actually reunion, though she joked they’d avoid mentioning exactly how their characters first connected. Still, the atmosphere quickly turned warm as both stars admitted just how long it had been since they last saw each other.
Martin began to reflect on the gap, saying they were just talking about how long it had been, before Joanna jumped in to confirm it had been “20 odd years.” He agreed, adding that they filmed the movie back in 2002 or 2003 — a time that now feels like a different era entirely.
Joanna then revealed a surprising detail: she didn’t even attend the film’s premiere. She explained that she was getting married in 2003, so she missed the big night and didn’t actually see the film when it first came out.
Despite the long separation, the pair slipped effortlessly back into their old dynamic. Joanna laughed that she didn’t think either of them had aged at all, while Martin quipped that if anything, they’d gone backwards — a moment that had the studio laughing and fans swooning online.
Both stars have since built impressive careers. Joanna spoke about her new BBC series Shift the Thrift, while Martin promoted his upcoming murder mystery film Flavia alongside co-star Molly Belle Wright.
Love Actually itself, released in 2003, remains one of Britain’s most beloved festive films, weaving together multiple storylines that converge during Christmas. But behind the scenes, things weren’t always so certain.
Director Richard Curtis later admitted he once feared the entire film would fail. He confessed that during editing, the team believed it was a disaster and struggled to make the stories work together. He also revealed that the Christmas setting wasn’t even part of the original plan — it only came to him midway through writing as a way to tie everything together.
Curtis also made the tough decision to cut several scenes, including one involving a lesbian couple and another set in Kenya, because they didn’t fit the final version. One particularly emotional deleted storyline featured a strict headmistress caring for her terminally ill partner — a plot that never made it to the final cut but added depth to the film’s interconnected world.
Looking back now, the director finds it amusing that the film has become such a cultural phenomenon. He even recalled a recent moment while working on a new project where children joked about watching a “boring Christmas film” — only for that film to turn out to be Love Actually itself.
Yet if this surprise reunion proved anything, it’s that the film’s legacy — and the connection between its stars — is far from fading. Even after 22 years, some on-screen romances clearly never lose their spark.
