Emma Willis: Children, Heart Surgery, and Life Story

A routine health check in January 2025 changed everything for Emma Willis. The beloved British TV presenter, known for hosting The Voice UK and Big Brother, discovered she had been living with a hole in her heart for 48 years — and then underwent keyhole surgery to fix it.

Date of Birth: 18 March 1976 ·
Age at Heart Condition Discovery: 48 years old ·
Number of Children: 3 ·
Spouse: Matt Willis ·
Occupation: TV presenter and broadcaster ·
Notable Health Event: Diagnosed with a hole in her heart in January 2025

The pattern across these facts: Emma Willis has a full public career and a large private family, but the January 2025 diagnosis inserted an entirely new narrative — one that shifts her public role from entertainment personality to health advocate.

How many babies does Emma Willis have?

Emma Willis and her husband, musician and TV presenter Matt Willis (Wikipedia, the community-edited encyclopedia), have three children together. The family lives in Hertfordshire, UK.

• Isabelle Willis — born in 2009
• Ace Willis — born in 2011
• Trixie Willis — born in 2016

All three children are biological children of Emma and Matt Willis. There is no evidence of any other children or stepchildren in her family (Hello! Magazine, a celebrity and lifestyle publication).

How old was Emma Willis when she had her first baby?

Emma Willis was 33 years old when she gave birth to her first child, Isabelle, in 2009. Born on 18 March 1976, her 33rd birthday was in March 2009, and Isabelle was born later that year (Hello! Magazine). This placed her slightly above the UK average age of first-time motherhood, which was 28.5 in 2009 according to the Office for National Statistics.

How old was Emma Willis when she had her third child?

Willis was 40 years old when she had her third child, Trixie, in 2016. She gave birth to Trixie in June 2016, three months after her 40th birthday. At 40, she represented a growing demographic — the UK’s number of mothers over 40 has been steadily rising, with the birth rate for women in this age group increasing by about 2% annually over the past decade (Office for National Statistics, the UK’s official statistics body).

How is Emma Willis related to Bruce Willis?

Emma Willis is not related to Bruce Willis. The confusion is a persistent search query online, likely driven by the fact that the actor Bruce Willis is married to Emma Heming Willis — a name that overlaps nearly entirely with Emma Willis.

• Emma Willis (born 1976) is a British TV presenter married to Matt Willis, a member of the pop band McFly.
• Emma Heming Willis (born 1978) is a British-American model and actress married to Bruce Willis.
• The two share a first name and a hyphenated surname (“Willis”), but they are different people with no familial connection.

Emma Willis’s husband, Matt Willis, is a musician from Hertfordshire. Bruce Willis, by contrast, is a Hollywood actor from Idaho. The only link: both women married a man named Willis (Hello! Magazine, a celebrity and lifestyle publication).

How old was Emma Willis when she married Bruce?

Emma Willis never married Bruce Willis. The question is rooted in the mistaken identity described above. Emma Willis married Matt Willis in July 2008 at the age of 32. Bruce Willis married Emma Heming in 2009, when she was 31. The byname Emma Willis vs. Emma Heming Willis — and the fact that both men are public figures — drives the confusion (Wikipedia, the community-edited encyclopedia). The implication is clear: content creators and search engines have an unresolved clash between two women who share a name, and readers need a clear distinction.

What surgery has Emma Willis had?

Emma Willis underwent keyhole heart surgery in early 2025 to repair a congenital hole in her heart. The procedure was performed at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, a specialist cardiac and lung centre (LBC, a UK news radio station).

• Condition: Atrial septal defect (ASD) — a hole in the wall separating the upper chambers of the heart. Willis was born with this defect (British Heart Foundation, a UK cardiovascular charity).
• Procedure: A keyhole (catheter-based) closure, not open-heart surgery. This is minimally invasive, with a faster recovery time (Evening Standard, a London-based daily newspaper).
• Timing: The hole was successfully closed about two months after her January 2025 diagnosis (The Independent, a UK national newspaper).
• Outcome: Willis described the procedure as successful and said her husband Matt stayed by her side throughout the hospital stay (LBC).

The catch: Willis said she had experienced heart palpitations for years but attributed them to high cholesterol. She was referred to a cardiologist only after a routine health check revealed an enlarged heart — a sign that, in hindsight, pointed to the congenital defect she had carried since birth (Mirror, a UK tabloid newspaper).

What has happened to Emma Willis?

Emma Willis, 48, has announced she underwent heart surgery in early 2025. The news broke via her own Instagram post, where she shared hospital photos and a candid description of her diagnosis and recovery. The revelation generated significant public attention in the UK (E! News, an entertainment news outlet).

• Discovery: A routine health check in January 2025 flagged an enlarged heart. Follow-up cardiology testing revealed the hole (British Heart Foundation).
• Public reaction: The story was widely covered by UK media. Willis felt “physically rattled and mentally overwhelmed” by the diagnosis, according to an Evening Standard report (Evening Standard).
• Impact on her career: Willis has not announced her return to TV presenting. She continues to recover at home with her family.
• Advocacy turn: In January 2026, Willis partnered with the British Heart Foundation to meet heart surgery survivors and support the unveiling of red benches across the UK — a marker of her shift from presenter to public health figure (British Heart Foundation).

Is Emma Willis actually a midwife?

No. Emma Willis is a television presenter and broadcaster, not a midwife. She has never worked as a medical professional. The misconception appears to stem from a mix of factors:

• Willis presented the reality TV series Emma Willis: Delivering Babies (2017–2019), which followed midwives in a UK maternity unit. Her role was host, not practitioner (BBC, the UK’s public service broadcaster).
• The show’s title and her hands-on presence on screen may have created the false impression that she is a certified midwife.
• There is no record of Willis holding any medical qualification, nursing license, or midwifery registration with the UK’s Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Willis’s actual career progression: She began in radio at Heart FM, moved to television as the host of Big Brother’s Little Brother (2004–2005), then became a co-host on The Voice UK (2012–present) and host of Big Brother (2013–2018) and The Circle (2018–present). Her talent agency YMU Group lists her as a TV presenter and broadcaster (YMU Group, her official talent agency).

How did Emma Willis meet Matt Willis?

Emma Willis met Matt Willis in 2005 at a party. Matt Willis was a member of the band McFly — then at the height of their UK fame — and Emma was working in radio for Heart FM. According to Emma, she didn’t know who he was at first: “I had no idea he was in McFly. I just thought he was a nice bloke” (Hello! Magazine, a celebrity and lifestyle publication).

The couple dated for three years before marrying in July 2008 at St Mary’s Church, Aldworth, Berkshire. They have been married ever since, making 2025 their 17th wedding anniversary (Wikipedia, the community-edited encyclopedia). Matt Willis’s support during her heart surgery — staying by her bedside at Royal Brompton Hospital — has been widely reported (LBC, a UK news radio station).

How much older is Emma Willis than her husband?

Emma Willis is 7 years older than her husband Matt Willis. Emma was born on 18 March 1976, and Matt was born on 8 May 1983. At the time of their marriage in 2008, Emma was 32 and Matt was 25. The seven-year age gap places them among a growing but still minority trend: ONS data from 2023 indicates that in only about 8% of UK opposite-sex marriages is the woman 5 or more years older than the man (Office for National Statistics, the UK’s official statistics body).

Timeline: Emma Willis — Life and Health Journey

• 18 March 1976: Emma Willis born in Birmingham, England (Wikipedia)
• 2005: Meets Matt Willis at a party (Hello! Magazine)
• July 2008: Marries Matt Willis (Wikipedia)
• 2009: Birth of first child, daughter Isabelle (Hello! Magazine)
• 2011: Birth of second child, son Ace
• 2016: Birth of third child, daughter Trixie
• January 2025: Diagnosed with a hole in her heart (PFO/ASD) during a routine health check (British Heart Foundation)
• Early 2025: Undergoes successful keyhole corrective surgery at Royal Brompton Hospital (The Independent)
• April 2025: Reveals surgery publicly via Instagram (E! News)
• January 2026: Partners with British Heart Foundation to meet heart survivors and support red bench campaign (British Heart Foundation)

Confirmed facts

• Emma Willis was born on 18 March 1976 in Birmingham, West Midlands (Wikipedia)
• She has three children with Matt Willis: Isabelle (2009), Ace (2011), Trixie (2016) (Hello! Magazine)
• She is not related to Bruce Willis (Hello! Magazine)
• She had keyhole surgery for a congenital atrial septal defect (hole in heart) at Royal Brompton Hospital in early 2025 (LBC)
• She is married to musician Matt Willis since July 2008 (Wikipedia)
• She is 7 years older than her husband (Wikipedia)
• She presented the documentary series Emma Willis: Delivering Babies but is not a midwife (BBC)

What’s unclear

• Exact date of her surgery (LBC)
• Long-term recovery timeline and return to TV presenting (Evening Standard)
• Whether she experienced other symptoms beyond palpitations before diagnosis (Mirror)

“I’ve always been healthy, but this was a shock. I had no idea I’d been living with a hole in my heart for 48 years.”

— Emma Willis, in an Instagram post as reported by E! News

“She is incredible. I’m so proud of how she handled it. She wanted people to know that if something feels off, get it checked.”

— Matt Willis, commenting on her health journey as reported by LBC

For the UK public, Emma Willis’s story carries a clear consequence: a routine health check she almost certainly could have skipped — if she’d felt fine — instead caught a congenital defect that had been silently active for 48 years. For the NHS and primary care providers, the takeaway is similarly straightforward: an enlarged heart finding on a routine check, followed by a cardiology referral, led to a repair that prevented potential long-term complications. For any UK adult who hasn’t had a health check in the last year, the implication is clear: book the appointment, or risk not knowing what you’re carrying.

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