Fans of British heartthrob Tom Hiddleston let out a collective sigh when rumours of the actor’s engagement to actress Zawe Ashton began surfacing on March 17. The handsome couple made their first public appearance at last year’s Tony Awards in September and then again holding hands at the recent 2022 BAFTAs . Ashton was spotted wearing a ring on her wedding finger before their official engagement news at the same event. While they have been dating for three years, the lovebirds have preferred to keep their relationship out of the spotlight. Hiddleston, 41, told The Telegraph in an interview, “everyone is entitled to a private life,” adding that “my work is in the public sphere and I have a private life. And those two things are separate”. Ashton herself has led an impressive career in the UK and will join Hiddleston in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing opposite actress Brie Larson in the much-anticipated The Marvels . Inside Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes and Billy Evans’ marriage So, what do we know about the soon-to-be Mrs Hiddleston? 1. Her grandfather was a former prime minister Zawe Ashton, 37, is a British actress born to a Ugandan mother and English father. Her maternal grandfather, Paulo Muwanga, was once the de facto president and prime minister of Uganda in the late 1980s. Ashton grew up in North London and is the eldest of three children. Her mum arrived in England in her teens and met Ashton’s father at a Christmas party, and both her parents worked as schoolteachers. During an interview with The Guardian , the actress also revealed that she was bullied at school due to her keen interest in theatre. She finally changed schools, attending City and Islington College and later applying to study drama at Manchester Metropolitan University. 2. She is also a theatre actress, author and a playwright Ashton’s love for theatre led her to star in several stellar productions, such as Othello at the Globe and Gone Too Far! at the Royal Court as well as John Genet’s The Maids and Salome. She was awarded the second prize at the Ian Charleson Awards in 2010 for the latter role. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Zawe Ashton (@zawe) The star is also an accomplished playwright. Her first play, Harm’s Way , was shortlisted for the Verity Bargate Award while her other acclaimed work For All The Women Who Thought They Were Mad was selected as part of the Royal Court’s playwriting festival in 2009. for all the women who thought they were Mad(2019) // Character Breakdown (2020) by Zawe Ashton. #WorldBookDay pic.twitter.com/9gtnnWGb5z — zawe ashton daily (@ZaweDaily) March 3, 2022 Ashton was also elected to the prestigious Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature last year, and has set up her own production firm called Asylum Features. The multi-hyphenate actress has also published a book called Character Breakdown , a fictionalised memoir based on her acting experiences. The highest earning rappers of 2021 revealed – net worths, ranked 3. She will be seen next in The Marvels Perhaps it’s fate for Ashton and Hiddleston to get together, as the two actors booked jobs at the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not only do the couple star in a Marvel films (different ones, of course), but they both play a similarly mischievous character. Ashton is rumoured to be cast as a yet-to-be revealed villain in The Marvels film opposite Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson, reports Collider, while Hiddleston won hearts playing Loki, the Norse God of chaos. Before Marvel, Ashton built an eclectic film career with credits including: Blitz (2011), Nocturnal Animals (2016) and Velvet Buzzsaw (2019). She won at the 2020 Newport Beach Film Festival for the latter Netflix film. The British star has appeared in a slew of TV shows, too, in particular the acclaimed cult hit show called Fresh Meat in the UK. She played the straightforward and troublesome Vod, who is far from similar Ashton in real life. She told The Guardian , “I just always play these really extreme characters – they’ve all come with parental guidance stickers on them.” 4. She met Hiddleston on stage In 2019, the two actors teamed up for the play Betrayal – a revival of Harold Pinter’s play about a married couple’s infidelity, also starring Daredevil ’s Charlie Cox. After the play, the two were spotted at several public events like at the US Open, which sparked dating rumours. In 2021, the couple was spotted on a holiday together in Ibiza, where they were photographed kissing by the beach. In the same year, Hiddleston and Ashton then made their first red carpet debut at the Tony Awards and more recently at the BAFTAs. Zawe and Tom on AJ Odudu's instagram stories 💕 pic.twitter.com/3MBahUUn0F — zawe ashton daily (@ZaweDaily) March 15, 2022 At the same event, the lovebirds took a picture together with TV presenter AJ Odudu, where Ashton was spotted wearing a chunky diamond ring on her left finger. People magazine confirmed their engagement soon after. Who is Fashion Nova CEO Richard Saghian, owner of LA’s biggest mansion? 5. She is very close to her parents and found them funny Ashton is family focused, and is very close to her parents. She took a year off when her mum was ill with cancer before university. In an interview with The Guardian , she credited her parents for her wicked sense of humour, saying, “They are my favourite comedy double act.” She further added, “My dad is such a brilliant writer.” She also recalled a funny incident when she asked her father to watch Fresh Meat . “Actually, I told my dad he should watch the episode with Vod and her mum, and he said, ‘I’d love to.’ Then he came in and I was right in the middle of saying the C-word. And he was like, ‘Might just go and put the kettle on again.’” Want more stories like this? Follow STYLE on Facebook , Instagram , YouTube and Twitter .