The sweetest hard-launch and a 13-year age gap: What we know about Nicola Coughlan's new boyfriend.

Dearest gentle reader, in news that would make Lady Whistledown herself excited, Nicola Coughlan has confirmed her relationship with the mystery man in her life.

After months of speculation surrounding Coughlan's dating life (including some wishful but untrue rumours about her Bridgerton co-stars), our favourite leading lady has found herself in the midst of her own romance.

During the Points East festival in London, Coughlan was spotted embracing an unknown gentleman.

Now, she's taking their romance to the next level, making it Instagram official on Wednesday.

So who is Coughlan's boyfriend? Here’s everything we know about her new beau.

Coughlan posted this sweet photo of her new boyfriend, Jake in February 2025. Image: Getty.

Who is Jake Dunn?

As soon as news hit that Coughlan was seen with a potential new suitor, in true internet fashion, his identity was very quickly discovered.

Meet Jake Dunn — a British film producer and actor. Like Coughlan, Dunn is known for his strong presence gracing the screen in the period drama space. Starring as Thomas Blancheford in Disney's 18th-century historical fantasy series, Renegade Nell, Dunn shows off his acting chops as the entitled heir to the Magistrate.

Nicola Coughlan's rumoured boyfriend, Jake Dunn, pictured in 2022. Image: Instagram/jakeldunn.

If you think you recognise Dunn's face from somewhere else, you may be correct as he has also been in a range of television series including Big Boys, The Bastard Son & The Devil, and Get Even.

Interestingly, while Coughlan and Dunn have not appeared on-screen together yet, they do have some crossover when it comes to their co-stars.

Dunn has previously worked alongside Coughlan's Derry Girls co-stars and close friends, Louisa Hardland (who plays Orla) and Dylan Llewellyn (who plays James).

As an emerging British star, there is still plenty to uncover about Dunn and his relationship with Coughlan.

Is Nicola Coughlan dating Jake Dunn?

The pair are rumoured to be an item. Image: Instagram/bridgerton.fans.arg.

For months, Coughlan and Dunn had avoided officially "hard launching" their relationship. However, there were a few tell-tale signs pointing to them being together.

The first time the two were spotted cosying up was actually in March 2024, via an Instagram story posted by one of Dunn’s Renegade Nell co-stars.

Rumours started to swell further when the two were seen having fun together at a festival in London later that same year. They have since been spotted holding hands on several romantic strolls throughout London.

In December, Dunn included a sweet black and white photo of Coughlan smiling with two coffees and another of her posing with friends in an Instagram carousel wrapping up 2024

Meanwhile, Coughlan last month celebrated Dunn being cast in the play A Streetcar Named Desire, commenting, "Yep ❤️" on his announcement post.

Now, Coughlan has taken their relationship up a notch, sharing a touching post for her boyfriend's 25th birthday. The actor shared a photo of Dunn looking out at the horizon on set on Wednesday February 12, captioning it, "Happy birthday ❤️".

It's the first time she's made their relationship Instagram official. And our hearts are melting.

Safe to say, this is not the last we will see of these two gorgeous humans.

Coughlan made their relationship Instagram official when she wished Dunn a happy 25th birthday. Image: Instagram/nicolacoughlan.

The age gap between Nicola Coughlan and her boyfriend.

As many have noted online, there is quite a significant age gap between the two lovers, and we are living for it.

With Coughlan being 37, a millennial, and Dunn aged 25, firmly in Gen Z, can we classify this as a cross-generational relationship? Gen Z fans certainly think so.

Watch a clip from Nicola Coughlan's interview with Seth Meyers. Story continues below.

Nicola Coughlan's dating history.

Bridgerton stars Luke Newton and Nicola Coughlan. Image: Instagram/nicolacoughlan.

So before this new flame, who has Nicola Coughlan dated?

Coughlan has generally kept her relationships quite private and as a result, her love life has often been shrouded in mystery, leading to speculations and rumours linking her to co-stars (*cough, cough* Luke Newton).

Despite their incredible chemistry on screen, Coughlan and Newton are just friends and coworkers.

"I'll never get to do something like this again, on this scale. It's so nice having such a lovely friend that I can do all this with," Coughlan told Extra at the premiere of Bridgerton Season 3.

For us celebrity couple mavens, this relatively low-key snippet into Nicola and Jake's life is the dream. Here’s hoping that we’ll get to see more of this gorgeous celebrity couple in the future!

This article was first published in August 2024 and has been updated.

Feature Image: Getty.

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