Penny Lancaster Reveals What Still Amazes Her About Rod Stewart At 81 — And Says The Quality That Made Her Fall For Him Has Never Disappeared
More than two decades after Penny Lancaster fell for Rod Stewart, one of the qualities that first attracted her to the rock legend hasn’t faded.
If anything, she says watching him at 81 makes it even more remarkable.
Lancaster, 55, offered a personal glimpse inside their marriage during an appearance on ITV’s Loose Women, revealing that Stewart’s seemingly endless enthusiasm for work, music, fitness and life continues to inspire her.
The couple have been together since the late 1990s, yet Lancaster says the energy she noticed in Stewart all those years ago is still there.
“Well, it was this kind of voracious energy that he had and he still has at 81!” she said.
And according to Lancaster, her husband has little interest in slowing down.
Rod Is Still Looking Ahead To Another Tour
Lancaster appeared alongside Kaye Adams, Judi Love and guest panellist Emma Grede when the conversation turned to relationships and what keeps a marriage feeling youthful.
The discussion followed comments from presenter Susannah Constantine, who had credited her husband, Sten Bertelsen, with helping preserve her sense of inner youth.
Adams then asked the panel whether they felt something similar about their own partners.
For Lancaster, the answer immediately brought her back to Stewart’s energy.
“He’s still looking at the tour he’s got next year, he’s still recording new music and just his work ethic,” she said.
Decades into one of rock music’s most recognizable careers, Stewart is apparently still thinking about what comes next rather than looking backward.
That attitude is something Lancaster clearly admires.
‘It’s Incredible To Watch’
Stewart’s determination isn’t limited to his music.
Lancaster pointed to the effort he continues to put into maintaining his fitness, saying he goes to the gym three times a week.
For her, the combination of staying physically active and continuing to work at his age makes him an example not only to her, but also to their children.
“Whether it’s him going to the gym three times a week, you know it’s incredible to watch and so inspiring,” she said.
“And for our kids as well to look up and admire.”
It’s a revealing description of how Lancaster sees her husband after so many years together.
His work ethic isn’t merely something that keeps his career going.
She sees it as part of his personality — and part of what drew her to him in the first place.
Rod Was Apparently Watching From Home
The conversation then took a playful turn when Adams wondered whether Stewart might actually be watching his wife discuss him on television.
Lancaster confirmed that he was.
“He really is watching!” she replied.
Then, looking toward the camera, she added a message directly for her husband.
“I’ll blow you a kiss, darling, mwah!”
It was a lighthearted moment, but one that reflected the affection Lancaster has regularly displayed when discussing Stewart publicly.
Their relationship stretches back more than a quarter of a century.
Their Story Started With A Camera
Lancaster and Stewart first crossed paths in 1999, when she was working as a photographer.
She was asked to photograph the singer, and their connection gradually developed into a relationship.
Six years later, Stewart proposed.
The setting was appropriately romantic: the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
The couple welcomed their first son, Alastair, in 2005.
Then, in June 2007, Lancaster and Stewart married in Italy.
Their second son, Aiden, arrived four years later.
Together, they are also part of Stewart’s much larger blended family, as the singer has children from previous relationships.
A 26-Year Age Gap Has Never Defined Their Marriage
Lancaster and Stewart’s 26-year age difference has inevitably attracted attention throughout their relationship.
But after decades together, Lancaster’s latest comments suggest that age isn’t how she measures her husband’s outlook on life.
Instead, she focuses on what he is still doing.
He is exercising.
He is recording.
He is planning future touring.
And he remains immersed in the career that has occupied much of his life.
Rather than watching Stewart gradually retreat from performing, Lancaster is watching him continue to chase the next project.
That drive is the quality she finds so impressive.
They Renewed Their Vows After A Decade Of Marriage
By 2017, Lancaster and Stewart had reached their tenth wedding anniversary.
They marked the milestone by renewing their vows, reinforcing a relationship that had already survived years of life under intense public attention.
Lancaster has continued to speak openly about Stewart and their family during her appearances on Loose Women.
Their children and family life regularly feature in those conversations, but so does the admiration she has for her husband’s approach to getting older.
For Lancaster, growing older doesn’t seem to have diminished the quality she first noticed when their relationship began.
At 81, Stewart still approaches his career with the same restless enthusiasm.
The Quality That First Attracted Her Is Still There
After more than 25 years together, Lancaster could have pointed to countless reasons their relationship has endured.
Instead, she returned to something remarkably simple.
Energy.
It was there when they met.
It’s still there as Stewart looks toward future touring and new recordings.
And now their children are old enough to see it for themselves.
Lancaster described his work ethic as “incredible” and “inspiring,” particularly because Alastair and Aiden have their father as an example to look up to.
For Stewart, another year apparently means another opportunity to make music, perform and keep moving.
For Lancaster, watching him do it remains part of the attraction.
More than two decades after they first met, the quality that helped make her fall for Rod Stewart is apparently the one thing age hasn’t taken away.