Celebrity

Paddy & Christine McGuiness Have Split After 11 Years Of Marriage

"This was not an easy decision to make."

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Paddy and Christine McGuiness at the Pride Of Britain awards in 2021
Getty Images/Gareth Cattermole

TV presenter Paddy McGuinness and his wife, Real Housewives of Cheshire star Christine, share three children together: nine-year-old twins Leo and Penelope and six-year-old Felicity. As fans may recall, the Take Me Out host’s family shared details of their everyday lives back in 2021, during a raw and intimate BBC documentary that explored the realities of children living with autism. Sadly, in July 2022, Paddy and Christine McGuinness announced they are to divorce after 11 years of marriage.

The pair confirmed their split in a joint social media statement on Friday, July 22. “A while ago we took the difficult decision to separate, but our main focus as always is to continue loving and supporting our children,” the Instagram Story statement read. “This was not an easy decision to make, but we're moving forward as the best parents we can be for our three beautiful children.”

The couple added that they hope the statement “draws a line” under anymore “unwanted and unnecessary intrusion” into their private life. “We'll be making no further comment,” they concluded.

The announcement follows months of speculation surrounding the pair’s relationship. As per the Daily Mail, claims of infidelity on Paddy’s part made headlines last year, and just a week before confirming their divorce, Christine revealed that her marriage to the TV presenter hasn’t “always been plain sailing” during an appearance on ITV’s Lorraine.

Originally from Merseyside, Christine enjoyed a career in the competitive field of beauty pageants before meeting Paddy, and once took home the Miss Commonwealth crown and won Miss Liverpool, The Sun reports. While modelling at the Liverpool Tennis Tournament in 2007, Christine bumped into the Take Me Out star, and it wasn’t long before things got serious between the pair.

Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, Christine recalled the moment she and Paddy first met. “We had a mutual friend there who introduced us, but I can’t say I was starstruck. I’d never seen him on anything.” She continued: “I knew who Peter Kay was, obviously, and I’d heard of Max & Paddy, but I’d didn’t realise it was him. He made me laugh, though, he is quite a charmer and we just clicked.”Per The Mirror, Paddy proposed to Christine on Christmas Day in 2008. Two years later, in 2010, the couple tied the knot in a wedding ceremony held at Wirral’s Thornton Manor.

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