JOEL Dommett is one of the biggest names on prime time TV.
But The Masked Singer presenter, 37, says he owes his career to his model wife Hannah Cooper, 31, who has stopped him becoming a “horrific person”.
Joel told HOAR he defaults to the beauty when considering what job offers to accept and which to turn down.
The former comedian said: “Hannah is really important for me. I met her at the perfect time.
“I feel if I didn’t meet her when I did I probably wouldn’t be where I am right now and if I was here I would probably be a horrific human being.
“She keeps me grounded and happy. Without sounding all mushy, you know you have met the one when they make you a better person and Hannah definitely makes me a better person.
“She helps me make the right decisions. I think my life and career would have gone down a completely different path if it wasn’t for her.”
The couple initially met via Instagram in 2016 after Hannah ‘slid into his direct messages following his appearance in I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
He finished runner-up to Gogglebox’s Scarlett Moffatt.
“We met on Instagram after I came out of I’m A Celeb,” Joel previously explained.
“She sent me a cat emoji with the heart eyes.
“That is the modern equivalent of the old phrase ‘you had me at hello,’ now it’s ‘you had me at cat emoji’.
“She hadn’t watched the show but saw me doing an interview on This Morning and sent me a message.
“It’s mad coming out of the jungle. I went from 11,000 followers to 350,000.
“I remember going through the direct messages, not knowing if I was meant to read them all.
“She always jokes that she was just at the top of the pile.
“I clicked on hers. We started chatting and I was blown away by how funny she was.
“We had our first date a few days later. She didn’t stop talking.”
Fast forward to September 2019 and the couple said “I Do” in a stunning beach wedding in Mykonos in front of their closest friends and family.
However, rather than opting for an official ceremony, Joel and Hannah asked friend and voice of Love Island Iain Stirling to officiate the wedding – with his then fiance Laura Whitmore also in attendance.
“Technically it wasn’t legal because he didn’t officiate properly,” Joel said.
“There were too many forms. It’s like a mortgage. So he didn’t do the forms but Hannah gets annoyed when I say that it wasn’t official and essentially the whole thing was a play.
“We did the legal bit on the side. We sound so mean but there were no plus ones. You are going to have either 30 or 80 and weddings are so expensive and we are thirty as hell. We had so much fun. It was an incredible vibe.”
Last March the couple launched their debut podcast Never Have I Ever where each week they take on a new challenge.
Previous episodes have ranged from visiting a strip club together to giving blood.
Ten months on, Joel admits he’s not concerned about oversharing with fans via the weekly 45 minute episodes.
In fact he claims he and Hannah almost use the recording sessions to keep interest in their life at bay.
He told HOAR: “The thing is, I always think the less you hide the less people want to know.
“I think if you are super guarded then the more people will pry.
“We are a very normal, open couple and I think it’s nice for people to see that.
“We are getting comfortable with it. It has genuinely changed our lives. I really love it.”
During an appearance on This Morning last year, Hannah admitted she now can’t imagine her life without the podcast.
The model said: “It is fun, it is very honest, the lines of personal and work life have blurred as we now expose a lot of stuff.
“I do worry that this format can never end. We will have to do it for the rest of our lives. “
Keen to expand on the project, Joel is eyeing up turning the ever-popular podcast into a TV show.
The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! runner-up said: “A lot of the things that we do are very visual so they would make an amazing TV show.
“I think we will start to put it up on YouTube, but if any TV channel wants to snap it up first, you know where we are.
“I am just happy that people are seeing how amazing Hannah is.
“We all know how beautiful Hannah is to look at, but now people can see how funny she is to listen to.”
Joel is currently hosting his fourth consecutive series of The Masked Singer UK – though still can’t get over he’s on primetime TV.
For the second series running, the judging panel consists of Rita Ora, Davina McCall, Mo Gilligan and Jonathan Ross.
Joel said: “I still can’t get over the fact I have Jonathan Ross’s number in my phone.
“I just love texting him and don’t care if he texts me back or not.
“I basically fangirl over him. He is just a lovely guy with so much knowledge to give.
“He is exactly what you expect. He is the right level of showbiz. He just delivers.
“When I first got the job on The Masked Singer I was actually more scared about hanging out with Jonathan Ross than I was about presenting the show.”
Joel is the latest ITV star to be poached by the BBC after the beeb made bids for Holly Willoughby, Paddy McGuinness and Bradley Walsh.
HOAR revealed last week how he has signed up to host the upcoming revamped series of Survivor.
A TV insider said: “He was offered the job just before Christmas and accepted almost immediately. It is his first BBC primetime role and is a huge leap for him.
“Holly was his closest competitor but is so busy it was hard for them to make the dates work.
“Joel was a massive fan of the original series and made that clear when approached.
“He really impressed with his passion, and work on The Masked Singer and The Masked Dancer.
“The BBC feel Survivor is going to be massive, and having Joel is the cherry on the cake.”
Survivor originally ran for two series on ITV in 2001 and 2002.
