The inside story of Mark Wright’s reinvention: After his spouse Michelle Keegan broadcasts her first being pregnant, KATIE HIND tells how he went from C-list superstar hanger-on to husband of A-list actress – and why associates thought it might by no means final

Long before this week’s beachside photoshoot announcing the long-awaited pregnancy of his glamorous A-list wife, the celebrity circles in which Mark Wright moved were, shall we say, somewhat less refined.

Now the proud husband of esteemed actress Michelle Keegan, Mark was once chiefly known as the friend of Jack Tweed, the much younger lover of former Big Brother contestant Jade Goody who married the reality TV star three days before her death from ovarian cancer in March 2009.

A handsome ‘wheeler dealer’ type who always dressed immaculately, back in the Noughties Mark was most likely to be found on the outskirts of the C-list celebrity pack, eager to befriend showbusiness journalists with his stories and gossip.

It wasn’t unusual for him to get in contact with tidbits – and in fact, days after Jade’s tragic death, he reached out to me with intimate personal details about her final days, which I declined to pursue.

How times – and a decade of marriage to a highly talented and successful woman – have changed him.

The pair, who married in 2015 in a rather star-studded affair (more of which later), posted the news that they are expecting on Instagram, with a picture of Michelle – who last year starred alongside Joanna Lumley in Netflix’s popular drama Fool Me Once – on a beach showing her stomach as Mark looked on.

‘2025 is going to be a special one for us…’ the pair – both 37 – wrote, adding baby and heart emojis.

Mark and Michelle’s post prompted hundreds of messages of congratulations, some from their celebrity friends.

The pair previously faced intrusive questions over why they hadn’t started a family, so much so that in 2019 Michelle spoke of her ‘frustration’ at being constantly quizzed about it, saying: ‘In this day and age, you shouldn’t ask questions like that.’

Now, as he prepares to become a father, it is clear Mark has reinvented himself following those early days in showbusiness. 

As a born-and-bred Essex boy – Mark is from Buckhurst Hill – his first big break came when, in 2010, he landed a role on ITV’s new reality show The Only Way is Essex (TOWIE).

One of the original cast members, Mark stayed for three seasons, during which his tumultuous relationship with long-term girlfriend Lauren Goodger was played out for the entertainment of the nation. After three years, they split for good.

Shortly afterwards he met Michelle while on holiday in Dubai in 2012. At the time she was starring in Coronation Street as Tina McIntyre, a barmaid in the Rovers Return.

Michelle had recently split from Max George, who was then a member of the boyband The Wanted. So smitten was she with Mark that she quit Corrie and moved from Greater Manchester, where she grew up, to Brentwood in Essex to be with him.

Corrie bosses were stunned, later killing off her character, meaning she could never return.

Friends of Michelle were also surprised she had given up her role at the height of her career.

One said: ‘At the time we thought she was mad. She literally gave up her whole life for Mark. She was really at the top of her game and was hugely successful on Corrie. She was their stand-out star.’

Indeed, few thought the relationship would last, with some suspecting it was superficial and based on their mutual love of taking care of their appearance. 

How wrong this was. Michelle went on to star in the highly successful BBC drama Our Girl as well as Brassic. Later she played Bobby Moore’s wife Tina in an ITV drama about the late England footballer.

And nine months after their first meeting, Mark took Michelle back to Dubai for a romantic holiday, where he popped the question.

After setting the date Mark, booked the stag do of all stag dos to Las Vegas with 34 of his closest friends. Jack Tweed did not attend (Mark had eclipsed him in fame by then) but another of his friends from TOWIE, James Argent, was there, as was his brother Josh and cousin Elliott who had all appeared in the reality show.

I went along to report on it as Mark, dressed in tiny pink swimming trunks, partied with pals in Sin City’s most expensive and exclusive venues, including the five-star Encore At Wynn, where Prince Harry held his infamous ‘naked pool-playing party’, as well as Omnia nightclub, where Calvin Harris was DJing.

Even then, no one was convinced that Mark and Michelle would last as a couple yet his friends told me he barely stopped talking about Michelle over the five-day bash.

Several weeks later, the couple married in a lavish wedding at Hengrave Hall in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, which was covered by Hello! magazine. Guests included Corrie’s Antony Cotton, Emmerdale star Kelvin Fletcher and Mark’s former Strictly Come Dancing partner Karen Hauer.

Evening guests were treated to an array of Turkish food from Mark’s favourite restaurant in Chigwell.

At the time I revealed that they had surprised wedding guests with their version of the Dirty Dancing routine. Their friends cheered as Mark swept his bride into the air as they danced to (I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life – just like Patrick Swayze with Jennifer Grey in the 1987 film. She changed out of her wedding dress for the evening do so she could do the ‘Baby dance’.

Months later, the couple jetted out to Los Angeles, and Mark got in touch to tell me of his successful meetings with Hollywood agents.

‘I’ve loved being in LA,’ he enthused. ‘It’s amazing and it’s been exciting having meetings about working here.’

He told me Michelle had also been in meetings with top agents and that they had both taken to the LA way of life.

‘England will always be our home but both Michelle and I would love to spread our wings and work in LA,’ he told me.

‘We love the lifestyle here, we loved using the gyms. There’s such a healthy lifestyle we fit right into.’

For him, perhaps. He went on to land a gig hosting US showbusiness show Extra but he left a year later. He was also cast to present reality show The Bachelor.

Michelle, meanwhile, did not work while in the States.

Now both are back in the UK and live in a mansion in Essex – which Mark built from scratch, and which is a stone’s throw from his parents Mark, Sr and Carol, as well as his sister Jessica, all of whom starred in TOWIE.

He hosts a Saturday night radio show on Heart FM while Michelle continues to be one of the most sought-after actresses in the UK.

Between them they are thought to be worth several million.

As one friend of Mark tells me: ‘He always wanted bigger and better things. He was always popular in the Essex circles, he knew everyone and everything.

‘But he met Michelle and things just went crazy for him. Even he can’t believe his life turned out like this.’