Sir Richard Starkey, better known to the world as Ringo Starr, turned out to be the partner Barbara Bach had been waiting for all along.
At 75, Bach is remembered not just for her modeling and acting career, but for her iconic performance in the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me. In the movie, she played a complex character—both a rival and a romantic interest to Roger Moore’s famously womanizing Agent 007.
Back then, Bach was outspoken about her views on the Bond character. In an interview from 1983, she described Bond as a chauvinist who used women as shields. Interestingly, Moore himself didn’t disagree, admitting in a 1973 interview that he and Bond were both, in his words, “male chauvinist pigs.” He even joked that he’d spent much of his life campaigning against women wearing pants or bras.
Before her breakout Bond role, Bach had appeared in several Italian films, including the 1971 murder mystery Black Belly of the Tarantula, where she shared the screen with fellow Bond alumnae Barbara Bouchet and Claudine Auger. Her role in The Spy Who Loved Me launched her into stardom and cemented her place among Bond girl legends.
After portraying Major Anya Amasova, the tough KGB agent in the Bond film, Bach took on more roles, including the satirical Mad Magazine Presents Up the Academy in 1980 and Caveman in 1981, a slapstick comedy where she starred alongside Shelley Long, Dennis Quaid, and a young Ringo Starr. In that film, Starr’s character is infatuated with Bach’s character, Lana—though the plot eventually sends him in another direction.
But off-screen, life wrote a different story.
Bach and Starr met at Los Angeles International Airport while en route to film Caveman in Mexico. According to Bach, their romance didn’t begin immediately. In an interview with People magazine, she clarified that they weren’t involved during most of the shoot. Both had other friends and commitments. Then, during the final week of filming, something shifted. What had been friendly chemistry turned into something much deeper.
In a 2021 interview, Starr fondly recalled the moment he first saw her at the airport. She was with a boyfriend at the time, but he felt something special right away. They were headed to the same film, and the connection blossomed from there. He said simply, “All I can say is that I’m grateful she’s in my life.”
Starr, known worldwide as the drummer for The Beatles, is a cultural icon in his own right. Long before their paths crossed, Bach had attended a Beatles concert at Shea Stadium in 1965. Ironically, she wasn’t much of a fan at the time. She went because her sister Marjorie was obsessed with the band. Marjorie, wearing a Beatles wig, was accompanied by their friend Joe Walsh—who would later become her husband and join The Eagles as lead guitarist.
Walsh and Starr eventually performed together in Ringo’s live supergroup, The All-Starr Band. In 1975, Marjorie and Walsh were married, adding another connection between the two families.
Barbara and Ringo tied the knot on April 27, 1981, just months after the tragic death of John Lennon. Paul McCartney and George Harrison were both present at the ceremony, marking it as a moment of reunion and celebration during a difficult time for The Beatles’ remaining members.
Not long before their wedding, the couple survived a terrifying car accident. Their vehicle flipped twice after swerving to avoid a truck. That brush with tragedy changed everything. Afterward, Starr said they made a vow not to be apart again. The longest separation they’ve had since was five days, which he said already felt like too much. “I want to be with Barbara every moment,” he shared.
In 1988, the couple entered rehab together and have remained sober ever since. Their journey of healing and support has continued side by side for decades.
To mark their 40th anniversary in 2021, Starr posted a wedding photo with McCartney and Harrison beside them, captioned with a heartfelt message: “It was 40 years ago today. The love of my life said yes yes yes.”
Together, they’ve also built a life around giving. The Lotus Foundation, a nonprofit they run together, supports a wide range of causes—from cancer research to homelessness, addiction recovery, and animal welfare. All proceeds from Starr’s art go directly to the foundation.
Their love story is more than just a celebrity romance—it’s one of mutual admiration, resilience, and shared purpose. Bach, who has two children from her previous marriage to Augusto Gregorini, and Starr, who has three children from his late wife Maureen Cox, have blended their families and lives with grace.
“If it were up to us,” Starr once said, “we’d be together eight days a week.”
And Bach, with her trademark sincerity, simply said, “I just love the man.”
“There’s no getting away,” Starr added with a smile. “I’m incredibly lucky that Barbara still loves me and that we’re still together. I think I love her just as much today as I did when we first met.”
Their story is a rare one in Hollywood—one built not just on romance, but on trust, healing, and a love that continues to grow with every passing year.