Warwick Davis is pictured with his mystery girlfriend ‘Sponge’ as it’s revealed they have been dating for a year after the tragic death of his wife

After Warwick Davis was photographed with his mysterious girlfriend, nicknamed ‘Sponge’, it was revealed that the couple had been together for a year following the tragic death of his wife.

The Harry Potter star, 56, was spotted alongside the attractive brunette at the BAFTA awards, where he paid tribute to her for ‘helping him find love again’ in his acceptance speech.

The couple was also together backstage at a Madness concert last July; Warwick was with his new love and their two children when he accepted the OBE at Windsor Castle earlier this week.

Sources close to the couple say they have been together for a year and appear to be ‘happier than ever’ together.

Warwick’s girlfriend helps his wife, Samantha, rebuild her life after she suffers a heart attack in 2024 at the age of 53.

A source told the Daily Mail: ‘Warwick has been together with his girlfriend for over a year and they couldn’t be happier.

‘She has no intention of becoming a public figure and although she accompanies Warwick to events, she does not like being in the spotlight.

‘She is proud of Warwick and loves being around him at events but will stand back and let him be the center of attention.

The duo were also seen giggling together backstage at the Madness concert at the Eden Project.

The woman Warwick affectionately calls ‘Sponge’ was also at Windsor Castle this week with her two children, where the actor accepted an OBE from the Prince of Wales.

‘They are close with their children and have a great life together. All anyone wanted was to see Warwick happy and he did that with his girlfriend.’

Upon arriving at Wndsor Castle, Warwick was seen alongside his girlfriend and daughter Annabelle, 28, and son Harrison, 23, while speaking to Prince William, who accepted the honour.

He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to drama and charity.

His girlfriend also attended the Bafta Film Awards with Warrick at London’s Royal Festival Hall last month.

Last July, the couple were seen together backstage at the Madness concert in Cornwall.

In his acceptance speech after being awarded the BAFTA Scholarship, Warwick revealed that he had found love again with a mysterious woman.

He said: ‘Special mention must go to Sponge, you know who he is.

‘Thank you for showing me that life can still have meaning and for helping me laugh and love again.’

When asked about the identity of ‘Sponge’ last year, Warwick told the Jonathan Ross Show: ‘Staying true to the Harry Potter theme, I can reveal that Sponge is indeed Woman Who Shall Not Be Named.’

Referring to Daisy May Cooper’s character Kerry Mucklowe in comedy series This Country, Warwick adds: ‘Sponge reminds me a lot of Kerry. ‘Some of the things he said and his accent.’

Warwick also spoke about his emotional respect for his late wife Samantha during his acceptance speech, saying: ‘When you’re pursuing your career as an actor, sometimes you’re a little bit reluctant to do certain things, thinking someone else will come along and make it a little better.

‘He always said ‘go out and do this’. He was also great at networking, always talking to producers and getting me a job at the next gig. Very supportive. You need that in this job because it’s hard. You have to have someone who will be very supportive of you being away sometimes and working ridiculous hours.’

Warwick added: ‘Acting is a pretty lonely career really. ‘You need a solid foundation at home to support this and make it work.’

Warwick’s late wife, Samantha Davis, who was also an actress, died at University College Hospital in London on March 24, 2024, at the age of 53.

He was accompanied by his daughter Annabelle, 28, and son Harrison, 23, who was made an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for his services to drama and charity.

Warwick, who came to the ceremony, was seen chatting with Prince William, who accepted this honour, while his girlfriend and children watched them.

Warwick’s late wife, Samantha, who was also an actress, died of old age at University College Hospital in London.

The inquest into his death concluded that he died of cardiac arrest following complications from major surgery.

In 2019, he suffered from sepsis and was treated in intensive care. This followed surgery on his spine at University College London Hospital.

Warwick dedicated the BAFTA Film Scholarship Award to his late wife during an emotional tribute at the ceremony.

He said: ‘First of all, I would like to dedicate and thank my wonderful wife Sammy, who died almost a year ago. ‘He has always been very supportive of my career and encouraged me to grab every opportunity with both hands.’

Both of his children were seen crying in the audience as their father thanked them for helping him get through the difficult year.

She said: ‘Life has been quite difficult for me since then but thanks to the support of our wonderful children Annabelle and Harrison I have been able to continue working and participating in life.’

The couple met while filming the 1988 fantasy film Willow, in which Willow starred as the heroine Willow Ufgood. They got married in 1991.

In addition to their daughter Annabelle and son Harrison, Warwick and Samantha also had a third child, but he tragically died nine days after he was born.

Warwick said he did not want anyone to go through the ‘devastating’ experience of losing their son in 2022, adding: ‘You never get over it.’

Five years before her death, Samantha contracted sepsis, and Warwick stood guard by her hospital bed as she fought for her life.

While their family was preparing for a caravan vacation in 2019, they were suddenly struck by a mysterious condition and attributed it to stress.

However, he became seriously ill and came close to death before thankfully making a significant recovery.

Samantha later tragically died in 2024, and Warwick released a touching statement in which he said her passing had ‘left a huge void in our lives’ and paid tribute to his ‘favourite person’.

In his own words, he described Sammy as his ‘most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I do in my career’.

The Star Wars actor said he felt like he could achieve anything when his wife was by his side and felt like he had a ‘superpower’.

“He was a unique character, always saw the sunny side of life, had a wicked sense of humor and was always laughing at my bad jokes,” Warwick told the BBC.

Following the inquest into Samantha’s death, Senior Professor of Forensic Medicine Fiona Wilcox ruled that Samantha’s cause of death was ‘arrhythmic cardiac arrest and complications following a left thoracotomy’.

He explained that he has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism, which was ‘complicated by very serious spinal problems’ and has required multiple surgeries since 2016.

He also praised the care shown by hospital staff and told the court the hospital provided ‘nothing but excellent care’ and all of Samantha’s ‘complications were treated appropriately’.

He said: ‘I am satisfied that the medical cause of death must have been arrhythmic cardiac arrest and complications following left thoracotomy.

‘In my view, the stress of everything combined caused this arrhythmic cardiac arrest in a lady who was not known to have had any previous arrhythmia problems.’

Prof Wilcox added: ‘I found nothing but excellent care for this lady and the appropriate management of all her complications.

‘It is frankly heartbreaking that the surgery was so successful that complications only arose and led to his death.’

David Lawrence, a cardiothoracic surgeon at University College London Hospitals, said Samantha’s recovery was going well and her measurements were stable.

He told the inquest: ‘Unfortunately, the original plan on the night of this incident was for him to be discharged home the next day.

‘We had good evidence that this patient had an acceptable chest X-ray, the observations were very stable, and this patient was not bleeding during the day.’

During his stay, he had two surgical chest drains removed, the second of which was removed the day he died.

Prof Wilcox, Senior Coroner for Inner West London, said: ‘I am satisfied that the medical cause of death must have been arrhythmic cardiac arrest and complications following a left thoracotomy.

‘In my view, the stress of everything combined caused this arrhythmic cardiac arrest in a lady who was not known to have had any previous arrhythmia problems.’

The coroner added: ‘I can find nothing but excellent care for this lady and the appropriate management of all her complications.

‘It is frankly heartbreaking that the surgery was so successful that complications only arose and led to his death.’

In a statement released through their lawyers ahead of the hearing, the family said: ‘We know that the resilience and strength that Sammy instilled in all of us will guide us through this challenging next chapter.

‘His love, support and determination is a legacy we want to continue. The Helping Hands fund, established in Sammy’s honour, has already made a huge impact on young people in the dwarfism community and will continue to support families across the UK going forward.

‘Trying to come to terms with Samantha’s death last year was incredibly difficult.

‘But we hope that the investigation will eventually provide us with answers. ‘We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their kindness and good wishes.’

Samantha was diagnosed with achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes dwarfism, in her childhood.

Her husband is also affected by a similar condition, spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita. This meant he could never be taller than 3ft 6in.

Best known for roles such as Professor Flitwick and the goblin Griphook in Harry Potter, as well as his comedic adventures with Karl Pilkington in An Idiot Abroad, Warwick is particularly appreciated for his advocacy for those with dwarfism.

He co-founded the charity Little People UK with his late wife Samantha in 2012 to support people with dwarfism and their families.

Davis has confirmed that he will return to the wizarding world in the reboot of the new Harry Potter series, reprising his role as Professor Flitwick.