Stockard Channing gave a standout performance as Rizzo in the 1978 film, “Grease,” which also starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. She has had an incredible career, with her acting credits including “Six Degrees of Separation,” for which she was nominated for an Oscar in 1994, Emmy Award wins for “The West Wing,” and a Tony nomination for her performance in “A Day in the Death of Joe Egg.”
Stockard Channing Gives Rare Glimpse Into Her Personal Life
GettyChanning is 82, and she lives a quiet life in London, England, after moving from Maine, New England, in 2019. She chose to relocate after the devastating loss of her partner, Dan Gillham, who died in 2014.
In a rare interview with The Sunday Times Magazine, the former Hallmark Hall of Fame actress, who appeared in the 1987 film “The Room Upstairs,” discussed how Gillham’s death inspired her to relocate from Maine. Discussing Gillham, she said, his passing “was more devastating than I realized; it had a lag effect. The pattern of my life shifted, so I shifted my life from Maine,” The Sun reports.
Children were never part of her life, and Channing discussed this in her recent interview. “Children were thought about and, yeah, I think about them now because it’d be great to have someone taking care of me,” she said. “But hey, children can be just as selfish as everybody else out there.”
Channing had been in a relationship with Gillham since 1990. Despite choosing a life away from the cameras, she is happy. “I’m happy being a recluse,” she said. Channing has been married four times, with her exes including wood sculptor Walter Channing Jr, professor Paul Schmidt, writer David Deblin, and businessman David Rawle.
The actress appears content with her life, and is not looking for another romantic relationship. In an interview with The Times in January 2025, she was asked about new relationships. “No, I think that would be such a pain in the (expletive),” she said, People reports. “I’m consolidating, thank you very much. I’m very happy with the friends I have. No. Life is good. Life is very good.”
Stockard Channing Shares Personal Information
GettySpeaking of her move to London, Channing said in her 2025 interview, “I enjoyed living here [in London], the friendships I had, I kept. I was spending months at a time here. And then I was here during COVID, and that sort of cemented everything. I realized that I was happier here. Also at my age people get sick and people die and people move away. And that started to happen. Now I live here, and I’m really grateful that I was able to pull it off.”
In an interview with The Guardian, published on Saturday, August 8, Channing discussed her likes and dislikes. She revealed she is not afraid of aging, saying, “I’m over that,” and that in a film of her life, she would like Miriam Margolyes to be the star.
Channing also shared personal information, including her most embarrassing moment. “Fifteen years ago, I totally forgot my lines on stage and was mortified. We skipped two pages of dialogue and took three minutes off the play – to the delight of the audience,” she said.
Fans will get to see Channing onscreen again in “Practical Magic 2,” as she reprises her role as Aunt Frances. The film, which stars Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman, will be released in theaters on September 11.
