In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other. In countries that have bigamy laws, consent from a prior spouse makes no difference to the legality of the second marriage, which is usually considered void.

Most western countries do not recognize polygamous marriages, and consider bigamy a crime. Several countries also prohibit people from living a polygamous lifestyle. This is the case in some states of the United States where the criminalization of a polygamous lifestyle originated as anti-Mormon laws, although they are rarely enforced.

In diplomatic law, consular spouses from polygamous countries are sometimes exempt from a general prohibition on polygamy in host countries. In some such countries, only one spouse of a polygamous diplomat may be accredited, however.

Stephen John "Steve" Coogan (born 14 October 1965) is a BAFTA-winning English actor, comedian, writer, impressionist and producer. Born in Middleton, Lancashire, he began his career as a stand-up comedian and impressionist, working as a voice artist throughout the 1980s on satirical puppet show Spitting Image. In the early 1990s, Coogan began creating original comic characters which he presented in stage shows, this led to him winning the 1992 Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Fringe, for his show with long-time collaborator John Thomson. The most prominent characters he developed at this time were Paul Calf, a stereotypical lower class Mancunian and his sister the promiscuous Pauline (played by Coogan in drag).

Working with Chris Morris, Patrick Marber and Armando Iannucci for On the Hour and The Day Today, Coogan developed his most popular and most developed character; Alan Partridge, a socially awkward and politically incorrect regional media personality, who developed to feature in his own eponymous television series, Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge and I'm Alan Partridge, which were well received and were nominated for five BAFTAs in total. Outside the UK, Coogan is better known for his roles in films including 24 Hour Party People, The Wind in the Willows, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Night at the Museum, Tropic Thunder, Hamlet 2, A Cock and Bull Story, The Trip and The Other Guys.

Sister Wives is an American reality television series broadcast on TLC which started in 2010. The show documents the life of a polygamist family, which includes patriarch Kody Brown, his four wives and their 17 children. The family began the series living in Lehi, Utah, but has since moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. The seven-episode first season ran from September 26 to October 17, 2010, and drew strong ratings according to Nielsen Media Research. Season two of Sister Wives began on September 25, 2011. Season three returned on May 13, 2012.

Brown and his wives have claimed they participated with the show to make the public more aware of polygamist families and to combat societal prejudices. Brown has claimed his polygamist arrangement is legal because he is legally married only to one woman, and the other marriages are spiritual unions. Nevertheless, the series led the Brown family to become investigated for possible prosecution.