Daisy May Cooper’s new DJ boyfriend is a hard-working, old school raver former tool hire shop manager whose nickname is ‘huggy bear’… it’s ‘surreal’ to see him on the red carpet at showbiz parties, says his ex

The former partner of Daisy May Cooper’s new boyfriend finds it ‘surreal’ that her ‘normal, hard-working ex’ has been thrust into her showbiz world and has been attending red carpet parties, pals have revealed.

Daisy announced this week that she is expecting a child with 45-year-old part-time DJ Anthony Huggins – who she has described as ‘the sweetest, kindest, most laid-back man’.

The pair have enjoyed a whirlwind romance since meeting on dating app Hinge.

Both parents of two children from previous relationships, Daisy is understood to have liked the fact that Anthony – nicknamed ‘Huggy Bear’ – has nothing to do with the London show business circles she frequents.

Before he met Daisy, Ant – a rave DJ on the Bristol night scene who goes by the stage name ‘Fuse One’ – was in a relationship for 20 years with his childhood sweetheart, Liz Jefferies. They have a 13-year-old daughter and a 10-year-old son.

Friends of Liz said she is surprised to see Ant now rubbing shoulders with celebrities and performing at the BAFTAs.

A friend once said: ‘Liz is a fantastic mum but she thinks it’s surreal that her children have gone from a normal family structure to having a celebrity in their life who is on TV.

‘She remembers Ant as a normal, hard-working guy – what you see is what you get – who wouldn’t have gone to the glitzy showbiz parties.

‘His real passion has always been DJing and dance music. That and cars. He used to drive a BMW but now has a souped-up sports car.

“Even though he’s a DJ who plays to crowds of clubbers and has a famous girlfriend, he’s not a show-off, quite the opposite actually, he’s quite a quiet person.”

“Liz has never met Daisy but there’s no reason they wouldn’t get on. Liz is lovely and Daisy seems the same, very down to earth and humble.’

Liz declined to comment when contacted by MailOnline – but the source revealed: ‘Ant and Liz had been together since they were in their teens and had two children together, who are now both at school.

“But their relationship ran its course and they split about four and a half years ago. They’ve both moved on with other people and she’s happy for him.’

When he was with Liz, dad-of-two Ant worked as a store manager for Brandon Hire Station in Bristol – and loved an ‘old school rave up’ at the weekends, according to friends.

One told MailOnline: ‘Ant lived a Friday and Saturday night and was party mad, he went clubbing a lot, especially in Bristol.

‘His buzz has always been dance music and DJing. He still listens to old rave tapes from the early 1990s – hardcore, jungle, drum and base, the lot.

‘And he’s still keen to party all night – right now he’s usually behind the decks.

‘It’s very different to the BAFTAs where he had to be groomed and booted, but he’s a cool guy who’s open to different experiences, so he also enjoys the more formal evenings with Daisy.

‘There is no air or grace about him, he used to be the manager at Brandon Hire Station in Fishponds before the branch closed.

‘His workmates used to call him Huggy Bear, he was well liked, a straightforward guy with a great sense of humour.

‘He left a few years ago and ended up working for a company that supplies signs and backdrops for concerts, dance music events and festivals.’

Ant is set to DJ at an all-night event called Vinyl Destination 9 next month in Bristol.

A photo posted to his Instagram page last July shows him standing behind the decks at one of his events, with Daisy playing the role of supportive girlfriend behind him.

She commented: ‘My handsome guy’, to which Ant replied: ‘My beautiful lady’ with a heart eyes emoji.

Daisy added: ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ with a heart emoji comparing their romance to that of famous American outlaws.

Ant reportedly moved into Daisy’s Cotswolds home last year and the pair have now become ghostbusters after setting up webcams to capture paranormal activity at the haunted property.

But in an Instagram post last month, Daisy joked that all the cameras had caught was her getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.

She wrote: ‘Bf set up a camera in the bedroom to film ghosts…all he caught was bigfoot getting up to take a midnight photo’

The actress is planning her own spook-hunting show called Daisy May Investigates and has appealed to fans to email her with their own spine-tingling stories.

She added on another Instagram post: ‘Have you had an exorcism over zoom? A scarily accurate (or not) psychic reading at the village party? Have you seen the face of a dearly departed relative on a pork scratching or other unexplained phenomena? Then I want to hear about it’.

Daisy revealed she believes her house is haunted by the spirit of a dead highwayman and a pair of disembodied legs when she appeared on a special edition of hit BBC podcast Uncanny and invited host Danny Robins to stay the night.

She announced on Tuesday that she is expecting child number three in July, following daughter Pip, five, and son Jack, three, her children with ex-husband Will Weston.

Daisy and Ant went public with their romance last year when they put on a cozy display at the BAFTAs.

Speaking about her new husband, she told Fabulous magazine: ‘Now I understand that a relationship shouldn’t be rowing at 3am, then go out and turn your phone off.

‘That’s not what love is. Love is being able to live together in everyday life, enjoy each other’s company, be completely yourself and be accepted.

‘He doesn’t want to compete with me. He earns £1,500 a month and is the nicest, friendliest, most relaxed man.’