Meet Zoe Ball’s mystery man: Presenter cuddles up to BAFTA-winning TV production designer as her ‘sexy’ new boyfriend is finally revealed

Zoe Ball’s mystery boyfriend of more than a year has been revealed after months of the star teasing about her ‘sexy’ new man.

Smiling Zoe, 55, was seen cuddled up with BAFTA-winning production designer Mathieu Weekes, 49, during a beach walk near the TV presenter’s home in Brighton, where she moved her boyfriend last year.

Wearing a beanie hat and animal print scarf, Zoe was all smiles as she walked arm in arm with Mathieu in his hometown.

The Daily Mail can reveal that Mathieu is an award-winning production designer and has worked on popular series including The Traitors, I’m A Celeb, Love Island and Squid Game: The Challenge, for which he won a 2021 BAFTA award.

It happened while designing the set for the 2023 talent show Mamma Mia! – I have a dream that Mathieu meets Zoe, who hosts the series shot in Greece. Zoe’s last public relationship with construction worker Michael Reed ended in 2023.

The couple were first seen together at Glastonbury last June, a week after they said “mate” for the first time on Radio 2.

He previously lived in Richmond and still has a home there.

Last month Zoe opened up about her ‘girlfriend’ and revealed what she finds ‘sexy’ about her partner, just weeks after confirming he had moved into her seaside home.

Zoe, 55, was seen cuddled up with BAFTA-winning production designer Mathieu Weekes, 49, during a low-key walk near the TV star’s home in Brighton, where she moved her boyfriend last year.

The star, who dramatically quit her Radio 2 show in December to spend more time with her loved ones, had previously referred to Mathieu as ‘The Mansionist’ in conversations about herself on the Dig It podcast, which she co-hosts with her friend Jo Whiley, and hinted she could be away from the UK for months.

‘Pit sniffing is still sexy,’ he admitted in a recent episode, ‘I’ve had this situation often, I like to smell their armpits when I’m on a date.’

‘I know it sounds weird, but if you love someone, you have to love all their scents, not necessarily their bathroom scents. I draw a line at this. But there’s something about armpit scents that I think is really sexy.’

He continued: ‘My favorite thing to do often, especially if I haven’t seen my lover for a while, is when I put my arms around you it’s like I’m smelling your armpits and I look the same as before. I like this scent. It’s a nice scent.

‘Do you remember doing that thing when you were younger when you were dating someone, borrowing their clothes? I know my kids borrow their partner’s clothes because they smell, which is really nice.

‘I have this idea that if my partner leaves, I won’t enjoy making the bed until they return. A, because I’m worried they won’t come back, and B, I love the smell. I love their scent on pillows.

‘I really love this. I also remember spraying Kuros or whatever, Paco Rabanne, in my youth. I love scents. This is always a sign.

Wearing a beanie hat and animal print scarf, Zoe was all smiles as she walked arm in arm with Mathieu in his hometown.

The Daily Mail can reveal Mathieu is an award-winning production designer who has worked on popular series including The Traitors and I’m A Celeb, for which he won the 2021 BAFTA award.

The star, who dramatically quit her Radio 2 show in December to spend more time with her loved ones, had previously referred to Mathieu as ‘Köşkçü’ in conversations about herself on her podcast.

‘If you break up with someone, you find that suddenly you’re moving away, the scents you loved about that person start to smell a little weird. No, you say he’s gone.

‘Gone because you like their smell.’

After graduating from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Zoe’s boyfriend Mathieu started his career as a stage carpenter before founding the companyBizibot in 2012 and went on to work on some of British television’s biggest shows.

She won the BAFTA Craft Award for the 2021 series of I’m A Celeb and also received an Emmy nomination.

Zoe previously revealed that her mystery boyfriend ‘has more trophies than her’ during another chat on Dig It.

Last month Zoe opened up about her ‘girlfriend’ and revealed what she finds ‘sexy’ in her partner, just weeks after confirming he had moved into her beach house

“Even though pit sniffing is sexy,” she admitted in a recent podcast episode, “I’ve had this thing often, when I’m kind of dating someone, I like to smell their armpits.”

She continued: ‘My favorite thing to do often, especially when I haven’t seen my lover for a while, is when he puts his arms around you it’s like I’m smelling your armpits.’

After graduating, Zoe’s boyfriend Mathieu began his career as a stage carpenter before founding the companyBizibot in 2012 and went on to work on some of British television’s biggest shows.

‘He’s still around. Is she still in your life?’ Jo asked him in the last episode. ‘He’s still here now. ‘It still remains,’ Zoe replied.

While the presenter did not reveal the name of his tenant, he explained that he had more awards than him.

Referring to his stash of trophies at home, he said: ‘I think I bought a Sony for coming over, which is nice.

‘No, I bought a Sony and Marianne Faithfull gave it to me. I’m very happy, I’m really happy. And I think he’s Caner of the Year because of something I can’t remember.

‘We last won a BAFTA for Live And Kicking, which was fantastic. But I don’t even have a copy of it.

She won the BAFTA Craft Awards for the 2021 series of I’m A Celeb and also earned Emmy nominations.

Zoe previously revealed that her mystery boyfriend ‘has more trophies than her’ during another chat on Dig It.

While working on the set design for the 2023 talent show Mamma Mia! – I have a dream that Mathieu meets Zoe, who hosts the series shot in Greece

Mathieu previously shared this photo of the Bizbot team on Instagram (fourth image from the left)

‘I need to get one and put it on the table… Yes, the tenant has won a lot of awards…. I need to improve myself…’

Jo added: ‘Well, you need to take these trophies (tenants) and put them on the mantelpieces behind you. Play them. That’s okay.’

Zoe joked: ‘Yes. Maybe I’ll stop making some for myself.’

In an interview with The Sunday Times last week, Zoe confirmed she has a new boyfriend, while also talking about the success of her ongoing relationship with ex-husband Norman Cook.

Zoe and Norman, also known as Fatboy Slim, separated in 2018 after 18 years of marriage. The couple are parents to son Woody, 25, and daughter Nelly, 16.

Despite their separation, he and Norman remained close friends, even calling Zoe their “soulmate.”

In an interview with The Sunday Times last week, Zoe gushed about the success of her ongoing relationship with ex-husband Norman Cook (pictured with their son Woody, daughter Nelly and Woody’s girlfriend) as she confirmed she has a new boyfriend.

Zoe shared that even after their marriage ended, she and Norman remained close and managed to co-parent alongside their busy careers. “We were really lucky in our relationship,” she said.

‘When he wanted to do something, I was able to say, ‘I’ll be here the whole time.’ ‘I just need to be here for the next six months.’

In December, Zoe stood down from the Radio 2 weekend show just seven months after leaving the Breakfast Show in late 2024.

He revealed that his move away from radio was partly due to the pain of losing his beloved mother Julia Peckham in April 2024 after a brief battle with cancer, describing the months after the star’s death as a ‘crazy, awful, disgusting nightmare’.

Grief caused him to re-evaluate his career path and focus on family relationships.

He told The Times: ‘Then it was really hard and for a lot of people that’s when the wheels come off. I just thought, “What are you doing, kid? Where are we going with everything?”

Zoe’s last public relationship was with former construction worker Michael Reed (pictured together in 2021)

Before Michael, she had started dating cameraman and technician Billy Yates, who tragically died by suicide in May 2017 after a long struggle with depression (Zoe and Billy pictured together)

Zoe’s last public relationship was with former construction worker Michael Reed.

The pair were together for five years before their split in 2023, sources told The Sun; The relationship began to deteriorate after Michael became ‘a bit demanding’.

Before Michael, she had started dating cameraman and technician Billy Yates, who tragically died by suicide in May 2017 after a long battle with depression.