Andy Burnham has officially taken the keys to Number 10 following a whirlwind power shift in Westminster. But while the nation’s new Prime Minister prepares to lead the country, all eyes are turning to his secretive wife with a shock TV past.
Marie-France van Heel – known to pals as Frankie – has been married to Burnham for more than two decades. The Dutch-born marketing guru first crossed paths with the politician back in 1989 at Cambridge University, where she earned a reputation as “the coolest girl in college”.
However, their early romance hit a very public speedbump in 1992 when Frankie landed a spot on ITV’s smash-hit dating show Blind Date.
A nervous Burnham gave his blessing, though he later admitted he ended up watching the broadcast from “behind the sofa”.
Late host Cilla Black didn’t hold back on the show, cheekily teasing Frankie: “I used to like Andy Pandy – and you’ve got a real live one.”
Frankie ultimately picked “Will from Surrey” – contestant Will Harris, who rocked up in dungarees over a red jumper.
When quizzed about his grooming habits, Harris offered up a bizarre rhyme: “When I’m in the shower I generally makeup poems and short stories…Oh Frankie, oh Frankie, your name is quite cranky, pick me for your Blind Date and there’ll be no hanky-panky.”
Undeterred, Frankie asked: “What would you do if you were my first taste of British men?” Harris shot back: “You give me half an hour and I’ll give you the best time of your life.”
Unluckily for Will, their getaway to Gibraltar was a total disaster. Cameras caught Frankie lobbing a cushion at him on set, while he sourly dismissed her as a “cold fish”.
In a wild twist of fate, Harris later became a high-flying marketing director for the rival Conservative Party. Frankie quickly reunited with Burnham, and the couple tied the knot in 2000.
Speaking about the proposal years later, Burnham said: “When my wife got pregnant for the first time it was a complete shock. My first thought was, ‘Oh my God, we’ll have to get married’.”
The tight-knit family went on to welcome three children, Jimmy, Rosie and Anne-Marie, alongside their beloved bichon frise, Axel.
While staying firmly out of the political spotlight, Frankie forged a powerhouse career in marketing, working with massive brands like Sky and the BBC, as well as designing Burnham’s iconic cartoon campaign logos.
She has also shown immense courage behind closed doors. In 2010, after her sister Claire tragically died from breast cancer at 39, Frankie discovered she carried the same gene and chose to have a preventative double mastectomy.
Burnham praised her strength at the time, saying: “The decision was liberating rather than depressing because it’s lifted the cloud of fear.
“She did what she did because she’d seen the devastation breast cancer had caused to her sisters and mother. We more than most know what could have happened and we had to find a way to get beyond it.”
Now as the private marketing boss moves into Downing Street, she is set to become Britain’s most fascinating new First Lady.