Jimmy Barnes’ face lights up with joy whenever he talks about “my girl” – aka his gorgeous wife, Jane Mahoney.
With his strong and famous husky voice overflowing with warmth, it seems that even after all these years, the legendary rocker still can’t believe he struck so lucky in love.
The couple got married on May 22, 1981, and Jimmy’s 44-year union with Jane is one he celebrates often.
In fact, Jane is also set to appear alongside Jimmy on MasterChef Australia‘s 2026 series to set the contestants a challenge for Home Cooking Week, giving an insight into their own home life.
Scroll on for everything you need to know about their fairytale love story.
How did Jimmy Barnes meet his wife Jane?
Jimmy met Jane in 1979, six years after he’d joined Cold Chisel.
A self-professed maths and languages “nerd” who was studying at university in Canberra, Jane rarely dated and was more comfortable at the university’s chess club than in a nightclub.
“I’d met a lot of girls in my life, but no one had ever stopped me in my tracks like that girl did,” Jimmy wrote in his memoir, Working Class Man.
“She was way out of my class, but I loved her from the minute I saw her. Jane would change my life.”
What nationality is Jane Barnes?
The two could not have been more unalike. Jane had a privileged upbringing. Her Thai mum remarried an Australian diplomat, and she grew up in Rome, Moscow, Canberra, Tokyo, and Thailand. In comparison, Jimmy grew up in a slum in Glasgow, Scotland, which had been infamous for poverty and violence.
“It made me sad to think that had happened to someone whom I loved so much,” Jane said after her husband released his searing autobiography detailing his childhood and rise to fame.
“It’s a huge journey that he’s been on, and thank God he’s done it.”
Is Jimmy Barnes married?
Jimmy and Jane exchanged vows on May 22, 1981, at a registry office in Sydney.
According to reports, the pair wore ‘Groucho Marx’ masks on the day to avoid being recognised.
The couple are gearing up to mark their 45th wedding anniversary this May, and will no doubt share some loving words to each other on the day.
On their 44th anniversary last year, Jimmy gushed in an Instagram tribute, “Looking forward to every day of the rest of our lives together. Happy Anniversary to us.”
How many biological kids does Jimmy Barnes have?
Jimmy and Jane share four children: Mahalia, 43, EJ, 41, Jackie, 40, and Elly-May, 36.
Jimmy also shares a son, David Campbell, 52, with Kim Campbell. However, until he was 10 years old, he didn’t know Jimmy was his father.
He was raised by his maternal grandmother, Joan, and believed she was his mother until he found out his “sister” Kim was his mother when he was 10 years old.
Jimmy was just 16 years old when he had David, and his son believed he was just a family friend until the truth was revealed.
“I guess I ran away from the responsibility of [being a parent]. I just felt like I was dying [felt overwhelmed] I thought there were no prospects, no hope,” Jimmy told ABC Radio’s Conversations.
“It was just a matter of time before I died. That’s why I was trying hard to flee.”
Jimmy admitted he “might have wound up dead” amid his own struggles if he hadn’t found fame with Cold Chisel, which provided him with a lifeline.
“By the time I was ready to really be a parent was many, many, years later,” he added.
“But I always knew I had a son, and I would go and visit. I wasn’t allowed to say I was his dad because the grandmother just wanted to protect him, I guess, but it was really difficult.”
While David was initially “emotionally rocked” by the news that Jimmy was his father, they went on to form a close, renewed relationship.
Jimmy also has an eighth child, though he only found out about her identity in 2019, revealing the news publicly in 2024.
“Christmas is all about family, and we would like to introduce my daughter Katy Lee, who has been in our lives for the past five years,” he penned.
“Katy is a wonderful woman, and since discovering that I was her biological father, our family and extended family have loved getting to know her. It’s been heartwarming to see good relationships growing with her sisters and brothers.”
Katy keeps her family life private, and it is not known who her mother is.
Is Jimmy Barnes sober?
Jimmy and Jane have shared a journey of extreme highs and lows over the years, and she has never wavered in her devotion to Jimmy and their children, proudly describing her profession as a “wife, mum, and grandmother”.
Their relationship has weathered a financial crisis, which forced them to sell their beloved home in the NSW Southern Highlands, as well as addiction issues with alcohol and drugs, which saw them both seek help after a family intervention 20 years ago.
“He is the love of my life,” Jane simply said.
Where are Jimmy Barnes and his wife Jane now?
The past few years have seen a shift in their relationship after COVID-19 left Jimmy unable to perform. He and Jane, like many other Aussies, were locked in their home. It tested many relationships but only brought them closer together.
Jane even learned how to play the guitar, and the two of them, often supported by various family members, started the Jane Barnes Band, performing in their lounge room and sharing what they filmed on social media to bring everyone a bit of joy.
They sang over 100 songs and had more than 100 million people tuning in to watch over the course of two years. Jane, who also plays the bagpipes and a tin flute, even recorded a duet called ‘Love Hurts’ on Jimmy’s new album, Flesh and Blood.
It’s a song that Jimmy said was inspired by a turning point in their relationship when he decided to “lay everything on the table, all the good, all the bad, and the horrible” and ask for a new start – one Jane embraced with love.
Jane, who firmly believes in the power of positivity and kindness, and Jimmy now share much of their home life with their Aussie fans on their social media platforms. It’s a madhouse of family and friends filled with laughter and warmth.
And as to the one-time hard-drinking rock legend? Well, he now proudly shows off the roses, hydrangeas, zucchini, and squash he grows in their rambling garden in Bowral, NSW.
Jimmy’s also mastering the art of the pavlova.
Although they are opposites in many respects, Jimmy and Jane share a love of food and music, which she said is the language of the soul. They celebrate this in their cookbook, Where the River Bends.
“Now we live at the end of a rainbow,” said Jimmy, “where the river bends.”
They will both be appearing on the 2026 series of MasterChef Australia to promote their second cookbook, Seasons Where the River Bends.
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