Who are Ben Stokes wife and kids - Cricketer slams cruel robbers who terrified his family

England cricket Captain Ben Stokes has revealed his family home was broken into by a masked gang - but who are his wife and kids who were there at the time?

England cricket captain Ben Stokes is in the spotlight a lot due to his career – which has seen him win two World Cups and land himself an OBE.

Away from the cricket pitch, one of the sport's all-time greats lives a quiet life in County Durham with his wife and their two children.

But last night the 33-year-old revealed the shock news his home was burgled by a masked gang – who struck while he was playing in a Test tour in Pakistan. Worst of all, his wife and kids were in at the time.

Though the family came to 'no physical harm', in the raid – which saw a number of jewellery and sentimental items stolen – Ben said it's had an 'impact on their emotional and mental state'. And he dreads to think 'how much worse the situation could have been.'

As he launches an appeal to find the gang who did this to his family, we look at Ben's life with his wife Clare and their two children Layton and Libby.

Who is Ben Stokes wife?

Clare Stokes, nee Ratcliffe, is Ben's childhood sweetheart.

Also, 33, the pair have been together since August 2010, after meeting when they were just 19.

It was reportedly during a Lancashire v Durham game at Old Trafford that the couple first crossed each other's paths.

At the time Ben was at the beginning of his career – but it's said to have been teacher Clare that made the first move when she sent him a friend request on Facebook.

Five months later, they used the same social media platform to make their relationship official, but were long distance at first as Clare was studying in Somerset - where she is from - and Ben was living in County Durham, where they live now.

Young dad with two kids

Both Ben and Clare were just 21 when they welcomed their first child, a son called Layton in 2012.

As well as a 12-year-old son, the couple are also parents to nine-year-old daughter Libby, who was born in 2015.

Speaking about becoming a young dad, Ben told the Daily Mail at the time: 'It has changed me being a dad because when you have a baby and you're only 22, that brings a lot of responsibility with it.

'I still think I am a bit of a lad but there were just a few things in my life that needed a bit of attention and I've attended to them now.'

Sweet wedding with famous guest list

After two babies, a long engagement – Ben popped the question in 2013 – and years of living together, Ben and Clare finally tied the knot in a sweet ceremony in Somerset in 2017.

They announced their happy news in a local Somerset newspaper – and famous cricket pals like Stuart Broad, Alastair Cook and Joe Root attended the wedding.

Sharing a snap from their big day on Instagram in 2020, Clare wrote: "3 years... how did I get so lucky @stokesy”.

Ben is also not shy of publicly declaring his love for his wife, posting on social media the year before: 'Happy 2nd Anniversary to this absolute babe @clarey11, time flies when you're having fun...love you loads.'

'Cricket widow and parent to two monsters'

Clare took Ben's surname and has previously described herself as a 'cricket widow' and a 'parent to two monsters'.

The family also have two dogs, called Sampson and Shelby, according to their social media accounts.

Though Clare worked as a primary school teacher, she seems to be a devoted mum these days.

As Ben tries to protect his family after their terrifying ordeal, he said in a statement on social media: "On the evening of Thursday 17th October a number of masked people burgled my home in the Castle Eden area in the North East. They escaped with jewellery, other valuables and a good deal of personal items.

"Many of those items have real sentimental value for me and my family. They are irreplaceable. This is an appeal for any help in finding these people who carried out this act. By far the worst thing about this crime is that it was carried out whilst my wife and 2 young children were in the house.

"Thankfully, none of my family came to any physical harm. Understandably, however, the experience has had an impact on their emotional and mental state. All we can think about is how much worse this situation could have been.

"I am releasing photographs of some of the stolen items - which I hope may be easily identified - in the hope that we can find the people who are responsible for this. Although we have lost cherished possessions, to be clear, my sole motivation in sharing these photographs is not the recovery of material items.

"It is to catch the people who did this. Please come forward and contact Durham Constabulary on 101 quoting crime reference CRI00575927 if you think that you have any relevant information. Finally, I want to say thank you to the police service.

"Both now and whilst I was away in Pakistan, their support for my family has been outstanding. They continue to work incredibly hard in trying to find these people."

If you have any information, call police on 101 quoting incident reference number 543 of October 17 or Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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