The Short Answer: 72 Years Old
Peter McMahon is 72 years old. Born June 6, 1954, in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, he is 18 years older than his wife, Fox News host Dana Perino (born May 9, 1972). The couple married in 1998 and have been together for more than 28 years.
McMahon keeps a far lower profile than his famous wife: he's a businessman, not a media figure, and rarely appears in the press except alongside Perino. What is known paints a picture of a steady, successful executive — and a marriage that has thrived despite the age gap and the pressures of Perino's high-profile career.
Their love story — a chance meeting on an airplane, a whirlwind courtship, elopement — is one of Washington media's most enduring romances.
Born June 6, 1954: McMahon's Background
Peter K. McMahon was born June 6, 1954, in Blackpool, a seaside town in Lancashire, England. He was educated in Britain, earning a degree in business administration and management from the University of Liverpool in 1976.
He built a career in international business — notably in medical supply and retail management — working for major companies on both sides of the Atlantic. He has served in executive roles, including leadership positions in the medical-supply sector, and holds both British and American business ties.
By the time he met Perino in 1997, McMahon was 43, divorced twice, with two children from a previous marriage — and an established, globe-trotting business career. Perino was 25, a young congressional staffer with big ambitions.
How They Met: An Airplane in 1997
Dana Perino and Peter McMahon met in 1997 on a flight — she has told the story many times: they were seated together, got talking, and he was charming, funny, and British. She was 25; he was 43. Eleven months later, they eloped.
The courtship was whirlwind by any standard: meeting in 1997, married on September 30, 1998. Perino has said her parents didn't even know about the wedding in advance — it was that spontaneous. She has also said she knew quickly: when you know, you know.
The 18-year age gap raised eyebrows — a 25-year-old staffer marrying a 43-year-old twice-divorced businessman — but Perino has always dismissed the concern. Nearly three decades later, the skeptics have gone quiet.
The Marriage: 1998 to Today
Perino and McMahon married on September 30, 1998, and have been together ever since — through her rise from congressional staffer to White House press secretary (2007-2009, under George W. Bush) to Fox News star (“The Five,” “America's Newsroom”) and bestselling author.
McMahon has been the constant through it all: the supportive spouse at book parties and premieres, the dog co-parent (their beloved vizsla Jasper, who died in 2021, was a celebrity in his own right), and the private anchor to her public life.
They have no children together; McMahon has two children from his previous marriage. Perino has spoken warmly about her stepchildren and about a marriage built on humor — she jokes about the age gap herself, calling McMahon her “hot British husband” and teasing him on air.
The 18-Year Age Gap
Born June 6, 1954 (McMahon) and May 9, 1972 (Perino): the gap is 17 years and 11 months — commonly rounded to 18. When they married in 1998, he was 44 and she was 26.
Perino has addressed it head-on over the years: she was drawn to his maturity, humor, and stability; he was drawn to her energy and ambition. The gap that seemed notable at 26 and 44 seems unremarkable at 54 and 72 — a common pattern with age-gap couples who last.
At 72, McMahon is now the age Perino's father might have been; at 54, Perino is at the peak of her career. The marriage, by all accounts, is as strong as ever — a Washington rarity.
McMahon's Career
Peter McMahon has spent his career in business management, with a focus on the medical-supply and retail sectors. A University of Liverpool graduate (1976), he worked his way into executive roles at international firms, including leadership in supply-chain and operations.
Unlike his wife, he has never sought the spotlight: no books, no TV hits, no social-media presence to speak of. He's the rare Washington spouse who is genuinely private — known to colleagues as competent and to friends as funny, loyal, and devoted to Dana.
At 72, he is reportedly still active in business consulting — the workaholic streak, Perino jokes, being one thing they share.
The Couple Today
Now 28 years married, Perino (54) and McMahon (72) are fixtures of the Fox News social scene and Washington media life — but on their own terms. They split time between New York and the New Jersey shore, travel widely, and dote on their current dog.
Perino frequently mentions McMahon on air and in her books — always fondly, often hilariously. He remains, as he has been since that 1997 flight, the person who knows her best and the marriage's quiet foundation.
How old is Dana Perino's husband? 72 — and, by his wife's account, aging very well indeed.
Jasper: America's Dog
No account of the Perino-McMahon marriage is complete without Jasper, their vizsla, who became a celebrity in his own right — “America's Dog,” with his own social-media following and frequent on-air mentions. Perino's books feature him prominently; McMahon was his devoted co-parent.
Jasper died in September 2021 of aggressive cancer, and Perino's public mourning — raw, open, deeply felt — showed a different side of the composed broadcaster. McMahon, she said, grieved just as hard; the dog had been their shared child in a childless marriage.
They've since welcomed another vizsla, continuing the tradition. At 72 and 54, the McMahons remain, by all accounts, dog people first — the truest thing anyone knows about them.
Key Takeaways
Here are the essential facts covered in this article:
- Peter McMahon is 72 — born June 6, 1954, in Blackpool, England..
- 18 years — Perino was born May 9, 1972..
- September 30, 1998 — she and Peter McMahon eloped after an 11-month courtship..
- On an airplane in 1997 — they were seated together and started talking..
The Washington Partnership: 28 Years Beside the Briefing Room
Peter McMahon married into one of Washington's most visible careers — and then watched it get more visible. When they eloped in September 1998, Dana Perino was a congressional staffer; within a decade she would be White House Press Secretary (2007–2009) under George W. Bush, and then one of Fox News's signature hosts on The Five and America's Newsroom. Through every escalation, McMahon remained what he has always been: the private businessman beside the public figure.
That asymmetry is the partnership's defining feature, and it works because it is total. McMahon does not do commentary, does not build a brand, does not leverage the proximity. He appears in the press almost exclusively alongside Perino — the steady English executive at the events, in the photos, in the background of a career that belongs to her. In a city of couples competing for the same spotlight, they opted out of the competition entirely.
The 18-year age gap, the whirlwind courtship, the elopement her parents didn't know about — all of it predicted instability, and all of it was wrong. Twenty-eight years later, the Perino-McMahon marriage is the counterexample Washington reaches for: the spontaneous wedding that lasted, the May-December pairing that settled, the private husband who made a public wife's career possible by never needing any of it himself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Dana Perino's husband?
72 years old. Peter McMahon was born June 6, 1954, in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, and is 18 years older than his wife, Fox News host Dana Perino (born May 9, 1972). They married in 1998 and have been together for more than 28 years — one of Washington media's most enduring marriages.
What is the age gap between Dana Perino and her husband?
Eighteen years: McMahon (born June 6, 1954) is 18 years older than Perino (born May 9, 1972). When they met in 1997, she was 25 and he was 43 — and he was twice-divorced with two children. The gap raised eyebrows, but Perino has always dismissed it; 28 years later, the marriage is the counterexample to every prediction.
When did Dana Perino get married?
September 30, 1998 — eleven months after meeting McMahon on a flight in 1997. It was an elopement: Perino has said her parents didn't even know about the wedding in advance. The spontaneity became legend — 'when you know, you know' — and the marriage has now lasted more than 28 years, through her White House years and her Fox News career.
How did Dana Perino meet her husband?
On an airplane in 1997. Perino has told the story many times: they were seated together, got talking, and he was charming, funny, and British. She was a 25-year-old congressional staffer; he was a 43-year-old globe-trotting businessman. Eleven months later, they eloped — one of Washington's great whirlwind courtships.
What does Peter McMahon do?
He's a businessman, not a media figure. Educated in Britain with a degree in business administration and management from the University of Liverpool (1976), McMahon built a career in international business — notably in medical supply and retail management — holding executive and leadership roles on both sides of the Atlantic. He keeps a far lower profile than his famous wife, appearing in the press almost exclusively alongside her.
Do Dana Perino and Peter McMahon have kids?
They have no children together. McMahon has two children from a previous marriage. The couple's famous 'child' is Jasper, their beloved dog — known to Fox News viewers as America's dog — who has his own following among Perino's fans and regularly features in her social media.
Was Peter McMahon married before?
Yes — twice. By the time he met Perino in 1997, McMahon was 43, twice-divorced, with two children from a previous marriage and an established international business career. Perino was 25. The contrast — young staffer, veteran executive — is part of why their whirlwind courtship surprised everyone except, apparently, the two of them.