Behind one of Britain’s most familiar TV faces is a woman with a 25-year career of her own. Claire Nicholson is a British HR, coaching and operations specialist and the third wife of Les Dennis. Born in November 1970, she married him in 2009 and now goes by Claire Heseltine.
- Born in November 1970. She’s 55, and 56 arrives later this month.
- Married name: Claire Heseltine. His legal name is Leslie Dennis Heseltine.
- Over 25 years across HR, training, coaching, operations, finance and communications.
- Met Les in November 2005. Married 23 November 2009.
- Two children with him: Eleanor Grace, 18, and Thomas Christopher, 15.
- Director and part-owner of Les Dennis Limited.
Claire Nicholson’s Age and Early Years
Filings at Companies House give her birth month as November 1970, so she’s 55 right now. Papers reported her as 38 on her wedding day, 23 November 2009, so her birthday falls in the last days of the month. Les was born on 12 October 1953, which puts just over 17 years between them.
The exact date has never been published. Nicholson was her maiden name; Heseltine came with the marriage.
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Watford, School and Early Training
She grew up in Watford, Hertfordshire. Britain Blogs names Watford Grammar School for Girls and dates her time there from 1982 to 1989. The same write-up links her to CIPD, the HR profession’s main body.
No interview or filing backs that up. Her birthplace and her parents’ jobs aren’t known. Her social account names her mum as Ros Nicholson, and that’s it.
A Working Life in HR, Coaching and Operations
HR was the spine of it: recruitment, staff welfare, workplace policy, training, keeping people on track.
She’s not only an HR person, though. Her career takes in operations, training, coaching, finance and communications, across corporate firms, media, retail, hospitality and charity. She has called herself a “master of quite a few trades.”
When they wed in 2009, papers called her a business coach, others a life coach. No client list, no firm of her own. She also handles the household money, which Les confirmed in a 2023 sit-down with The Sunday Times.
Her Company Director Roles
Les Dennis Limited
She signed on as director on 15 July 2015, the day it was formed. The firm trades in the performing arts and is still active. She’s a person with significant control too, holding 25–50% of the shares and votes. Les is the other director. The paperwork lists her as British and a resident in England and says nothing about pay.
Ethical Social Group Ltd
Short stint. She was director from 1 March 2021, resigned on 11 June of the same year, and held the job title Chief Client Officer. The firm was dissolved in February 2026. She didn’t find it.
How Claire Nicholson Met Les Dennis
In November 2005, at the Butterfly Ball, a fundraiser for the late Holby City actress Laura Sadler, Claire clocked that they were both sitting on their own, so she asked him to dance.
His divorce from Amanda Holden was still fresh. He told The Sun, “After everything that had happened, I felt damaged. At times I just wanted to go to Spain and retire — to escape all the pain. I certainly wasn’t interested in another serious relationship.
Claire, who worked in HR and now looks after our finances, was a lovely person and, yes, I did ask if she wanted to go out for dinner, but it was nothing more than me being polite.”
Four months of dates and he still couldn’t commit. Then, planning their first Christmas, it slipped out. “Love catches you out when you’re not looking,” he said.
He proposed in 2007. Bond Street, Tiffany & Co., her pick: a white-gold diamond solitaire.
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The Highgate Wedding, November 2009
Monday 23 November 2009. Register the office first, then St Augustine of Canterbury in Highgate, North London. His third wedding, at 56.
Roughly 160 guests turned up, among them Michelle Collins, Lionel Blair, and Loose Women’s Carol McGiffin, Sherrie Hewson, and Denise Welch. The Telegraph noted two best men for him and two best women for her. His son Philip, then 29, was in the pews.
She wore a strapless ivory Rosa Clara silk gown with tiers of silk chiffon and a faux marabou wrap. Eleanor, 19 months old, was a flower girl in ivory. They turned down every magazine offer and pushed the honeymoon to the New Year, as BBC News reported.
Her Children and the Blended Family
Eleanor Grace Heseltine arrived on 24 April 2008, before the wedding, and turned 18 this April. Thomas Christopher, or Tom, came on 14 April 2011 and is 15. Les has said Tom tells the family he loves them.
She’s stepmum to Philip Heseltine, his eldest, now in his mid-forties. Hello! has followed the family for years and calls Les a proud dad of three. Home is Cheshire, near Alderley Edge. Neither child gets paraded about.
The Man She Married
Garston, Liverpool, 12 October 1953. He won New Faces in 1974, teamed up with Dustin Gee, and then fronted Family Fortunes for 15 years from 1987. Later came Extras, Michael Rodwell in Coronation Street, and a lot of theatre.
The first marriage was with Lynne Webster, 1974 to 1990. Marriage two, Amanda Holden, 1995 to 2003, ended because of her affair with Neil Morrissey. Strictly came in 2023 with Nancy Xu, and Les went out first. Claire’s reaction, per Express: “She cried but in a good way. She didn’t cry going ‘Don’t do it!'”
Fundraising in Cheshire
She sits on the Friends of King’s committee at The King’s School, Macclesfield. In May 2023, she helped put on a parents’ ball for 300-plus guests, entertained by Les and Bobby Davro. Celebrity Figures puts the takings near £30,000, split between East Cheshire Hospice, youth charity 42nd Street and a Turkey and Syria earthquake appeal. She was made a chair later that year.
Net Worth, Privacy and Where Things Stand in 2026
There’s no reliable number for her money. Celebrity sites float US$500,000 with nothing behind them. Her stake in Les Dennis Limited is worth something, but no dividend figure is public.
She’s been on X as @MrsCHeseltine since October 2013, where her bio calls her the very blessed wife of Les Dennis, and on Instagram as @claire_heseltine, barely posting.
Nothing new has been announced for her this year. Les is on the road with Waitress as Old Joe, and in a May 2026 interview, he credited her with teaching him to show affection more openly. Wikipedia dates the marriage to 2009. Seventeen years this month.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Claire Nicholson?
Ans: She’s a British HR, coaching and operations professional, now known as Claire Heseltine. Most people know her as the third wife of presenter Les Dennis.
How old is Claire Nicholson?
Ans: She was born in November 1970, so she’s 55. Her 56th birthday lands later in November 2026. The exact date isn’t public.
When did Claire Nicholson marry Les Dennis?
Ans: On 23 November 2009, in Highgate, north London. They’d met four years earlier at a charity ball.
How many children does Claire Nicholson have?
Ans: Two with Les Dennis: Eleanor Grace, born April 2008, and Thomas Christopher, born April 2011. She’s also stepmom to his eldest son, Philip.
What does Claire Nicholson do for a living?
Ans: Over 25 years in HR, training, coaching and operations. She now directs Les Dennis Limited and looks after the family finances.
Why does Claire Nicholson use the surname Heseltine?
Ans: It’s her husband’s legal family name. He was born Leslie Dennis Heseltine. Les Dennis is just the name he works under.
Sources & References
- Celebrity Figures – She raised £30,000 in May 2023, split between East Cheshire Hospice, youth charity 42nd Street and a Turkey and Syria earthquake appeal.
- Hello! – Les Dennis is a proud dad of three.
