Clive Myrie has said his wife once mistook Barack Obama for him (Image: Getty)
Clive Myrie, the esteemed BBC journalist, shared a hilarious mix-up involving his wife during his stint as Washington Correspondent.
Speaking on the Spooning with Mark Wogan podcast back in June, Clive, 60, recounted how he frequented a “swanky gym” at the Ritz Carlton while covering stories in the USA—a hotspot for global politicians and celebrities alike.
He revealed that his workout routine often included swimming sessions, during which his wife Catherine would sometimes peek through a porthole in the door to wave at him. But on one memorable occasion, she mistook none other than Barack Obama for her husband.
Clive recalled the amusing incident with a chuckle: “I was Washington correspondent. I was a member of a gym just down the road from the office and it’s a bit of swanky gym in the Ritz Carlton.
“We got a very good rate because it was the thank the lord because it was expensive. Everybody went there all the senators, congressmen and women they all used the gym [including] the former Prime Minister of . 50 Cent was there I remember, Barack Obama was there and Oprah Winfrey….There was a little port hole in the door to the swimming pool.”
David Harewood, Matt Frei, Clive Myrie, and Catherine Myrie (Image: Getty)
Clive added: “I tended to go to the gym around about 10/11 o’clock in the morning and I would be swimming [and] usually and Catherine would sort of put her head through [and] wave and walk on.
“One day she puts her head through, has a look, waves, guy’s doing his stroke looks up waves, it’s Barack Obama. It ain’t me,” reports the Daily Record. Clive has previously opened up about his relationship with Catherine, which began after a chance meeting at a publishing event in 1992. After several years of dating, the couple tied the knot and have remained together ever since.
When asked about the secret to their near-30-year marriage, Clive revealed that part of their success was due to the time they spent apart.
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He told The Guardian: “Figuratively speaking, at least. Having a space that’s your own; spending time alone, to bond when reunited. My wife, Catherine, has her own interests. I do, too. We celebrate out 25th anniversary this year, and each still have our own identities.”
In the past, Clive has also discussed why he and Catherine chose not to have children, explaining that it wasn’t the danger of his job but rather the amount of travelling which would have made things unfair on any potential children.
He said: “It wasn’t the danger of the job, just the travelling. We felt it would be selfish on children to drag them around the world. We’ve come from big families.”
“I’m from a family of seven (children), Catherine’s from a family of five kids. We weren’t desperate for some kind of familial glue. You get to the point where it’s much more difficult to have a child and then you realise, do we really want that anyway?”
Clive later recounted to The Times the couple’s journey with family planning, saying they had tried for children but “gradually decided it wasn’t for us. We come from such big families, our get-togethers are always huge. We’ve led a fully and happy life and we dote on our nephews and nieces”.