Exclusive: Matt Willis’ crucial rule he adheres to with wife Emma and their three rarely-seen children

Busted bassist Matt Willis has spoken frankly about how he manages to juggle his family life alongside his career in the spotlight.

Speaking exclusively to HELLO! magazine, the 41-year-old star and father-of-three revealed that he introduced one key rule 13 years ago to ensure he is never apart from his children for extended periods of time.

“13 years ago, I was like, ‘I can’t be away for more than three weeks because it’s just too much for the kids’. So that’s the one thing that I’ve been doing for the last 13 years,” Matt explained.

The ‘Year 3000’ hitmaker, who also shares Isabelle and Trixie with his presenter wife Emma, went on to say: “So even if it means coming back for a day or two, and then going back again, I will never be away for more than three weeks.”

While Matt shot to fame as one third of pop-punk band Busted in the early 2000s, he’s also managed to carve out a successful career in the world of presenting and has received plaudits for his landmark documentaries as well as his podcast titled On The Mend.

His wife Emma, 49, is just as busy, hosting a plethora of shows including; The Voice UK, Emma Willis: Delivering Babies and Love is Blind: UK, which she presents alongside Matt. Although their schedules are clearly jam-packed, quality family time remains a priority for Matt.

Family holiday bliss 

Aside from spending the evenings together as a family of five (Matt and Emma have a no-phone rule after 7pm), the Willis clan also savour moments abroad. Musing on their family holidays, Matt said: “We’re much a chill by the pool kind of family. Although, two of my kids are much older now, my son is 13 and my daughter is almost 16… Every holiday used to be me in the pool throwing the children in, but now I’m just throwing one of them in. They keep me busy.”

He added: “Holidays for us are about switching off from work and from life and just being together.”

Keeping the romance alive

Spending solo time with Emma is just as important. The duo, who tied the knot in 2008, make sure to break up their routines with date nights – chiefly theatre jaunts and dancing – as well as couples trips. “We prioritise our relationship because we do work a lot,” Matt shared. “We do try and make time for date nights, and a couple of times a year, we go away together for a night or two.”

Recently, the pair enjoyed a nostalgic cruise on the new Disney Fantasy ahead of its arrival in Southampton for its first-ever summer season. The maritime adventure was a chance for them to take a trip down memory lane while also ticking off a series of hilarious challenges concocted by Janette Manrara, Coleen Rooney, Rob Beckett, Alison Hammond and Romesh Ranganathan.

Of the experience, Matt said: “I was quite surprised by how much of a laugh we had. It was a brilliant trip… The only downside is that our kids didn’t talk to us for a day or two. They were very jealous.”

Working together

While holidays provide light relief from the daily grind, Matt and Emma have had the joy of working together on an array of projects in recent years – a development that has made work “such a joy”.

Despite harbouring a fear of stepping on his “incredible” wife’s presenting toes and potentially “ruining it” for her, Matt has fully embraced working alongside Emma. Of their experience filming Love Is Blind: UK, the musician said: “I remember on the first day I was so nervous because I hadn’t done it [presenting] for 14 years… but then she just blew me away. She’s so good at it.

© Courtesy of Netflix

The secret to their happy relationship? Honesty. “We don’t hold anything in. There’s nothing unsaid. We are very comfortable with each other to say what’s on our mind. I think honesty is the most important thing.

“We want the best for each other in every possible way. There are never any awkward rows or anything. I want the best for her, and she wants the best for me. We know who we are now, which I think takes time. We respect that about each other, and we don’t want to change anything about each other. We just want to kind of embrace everything that’s great about each other.”

“Watch the full showdown now – exclusively on Disney UK’s official YouTube channel at youtube.com/@DisneyUK”

 For more details about 2025 and 2026 summer itineraries visit www.disneycruise.com.