Ben says, ‘She claims not to remember me from that day as there were hundreds of people auditioning. I’m not sure that I can believe her as I remember that I was wearing a very fetching corduroy jacket which must have caught her eye!’
Despite the jacket, all was not lost, and Ben and Sophie spent more time together when she became President of the society and he, Treasurer. While rehearsing for Anything Goes, the pair became inseparable.
Sophie says fondly, ‘We became friends, and grew closer and closer until I knew that it was inevitable that we would end up together. It was an old-fashioned courtship really. Ben was, and is, the perfect gentleman.’
Despite their obvious rapport, it wasn’t until their friend, Helen Mumby (Classics, 2005), gave them some tickets for The History Boys at the National Theatre, that their relationship truly blossomed.
Ben recalls, ‘They were excellent tickets and after enjoying the show we went for a walk along the South Bank. That would have been an excellent place for a first kiss, but instead we went for the more romantic location of the bus stop outside Sainsbury’s Local on Waterloo Road,’ (a location many alumni will be very familiar with).
They were finally married in Sophie’s hometown of Geneva in July 2011, surrounded by family and friends (many of whom they had also met at King’s). Ben and Sophie’s advice for a happy relationship is to laugh often, forgive easily, and always keep hold of that magic.
This is an ongoing series of stories about alumni who met at King's and we're on the hunt for more. Please email forever@kcl.ac.uk to submit yours.