Was engaged to Irish PR director
John Dineen on Valentine's Day in February 2015, but he died from cancer 13 December 2015 just two days before Michelle's 34th birthday. The couple had been introduced by Irish actor
Allen Leech. In the TV series episode
Beautiful Things Deserve Beautiful Things (2016) featuring Dockery, Dineen is accorded an "In Loving Memory" dedication in the closing credits. At the funeral in County Cork, Ireland (16 Dec. 2015), Michelle performed her late fiancé's favorite song "The Folks Who Live On the Hill.".