Here is information about how they met, their relationship, attitudes toward marriage, and more.
Tilda Swinton aka Katherine Matilda Swinton: November 5, 1960 in London, England.
John Byrne: January 6, 1940 in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland.
Tilda and John met in December 1985 while they were both working on "The White Rose" production at the Traverse. They didn't become a couple until 1990 when she appeared in "Your Cheatin' Heart."
"It also saw Swinton hook up with Byrne, having met up again in the BBC canteen. Their quick and prolific minds and love of art and all things Scottish would see their union prosper and endure."
Source: Tiscali.co.uk
John and Tilda have twins, a son and daughter.
- Xavier Swinton Byrne: Born in 1997.
- Honor Swinton Byrne: Born in 1997.
John has two children from his first marriage to Alice Simpson.
- John Byrne:
- Cecilia (Celie) Byrne:
Tilda and John live in Nairn, Scotland.
Tilda about living in the Scottish Highlands: "Yes, we live in the wilderness on the east coast. It's such a strange landscape, because it's got a sort of golden mien of its own, and there's a way of driving through it where you feel you're in a river or something."
Source: Graham Fuller, "Still Testing New Waters After All These Years", Interview, August 2001, v 31, i8, p46.
Tilda: Actress, producer.
John: Writer, actor, director, playwright, artist.
John was married when he met Tilda.
- Alice Simpson: John married Alice, an artist, on April 1, 1964. They met at the Glasgow School of Art. John and Alice have two children.
Peter Ross: "It is usually written in the Press that Swinton is his wife, but, in fact, he is still married to Alice Simpson, mother of his two grown children, John and Celie. I had no idea he was still married until he told me, but he won't say more than that. "If it's painful to other people," he says, "I'd rather not talk about it."
Source: "Alice through the looking glass; At the age of 62, John Byrne", The Sunday Herald, 6/30/2002.
Tilda about her relationship with Sandro Kopp, a German-born actor and painter based in New Zealand: “What is true is that John and I live here with our children and Sandro is sometimes here with us, and we travel the world together. We are all a family.”
Source: TimesOnLine.co.uk
Source: Elizabeth Snead, "Tilda's tilt-a-whirl style", LATimes.com, 12/12/2007.
Source: "Tilda Swinton's open marriage", TheFirstPost.co.uk, 2/12/2008.
