After one of showbiz’s most toxic divorces, triggered by the discovery of text messages to another woman, Ruth Langsford could be forgiven for walking away from her husband of 14 years for good.
uncertain
Langsford → trigger → years
But in a surprising turn of events – and one which will leave jilted husbands scratching their heads – it appears Eamonn Holmes has come out of it all rather better than some say he deserved.
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he → leave → it
For I hear that Ruth, who once claimed that the split two years ago left her with a ‘broken heart’ and ‘broken dreams’, has swallowed her pride and is back at her estranged husband’s side.
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split → hear → side
While this is no romantic reunion, it is one born of affection as she is caring for him while he remains vulnerable following a stroke six months ago.
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he → bear → stroke
It is an astonishing turnaround given how toxic their divorce had become.
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divorce → give → ?
The couple, who’d hosted ITV’s This Morning together for the entire duration of their marriage, had started communicating almost exclusively via their lawyers – and, at times, through their children.
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who → host → children
And perhaps more astonishingly still, Ruth has been joined in her efforts by Eamonn’s first wife, Gabrielle Holmes, with whom he has three children, and from whom he got divorced three decades ago.
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he → join → whom
Both women have, I’m told, put the past behind them – and, particularly for Ruth, the huge emotional toll of the recent break-up – and are bonding over the serious concerns they share for 66-year-old Eamonn’s wellbeing.
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they → tell → wellbeing
While both at one time vowed to stand by Eamonn ‘in sickness and in health’, it’s likely neither imagined they would be continuing to fulfil those promises after their marriages ended – and what Eamonn put them through.
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Eamonn → vow → them
Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford appear to have put their differences behind them, and she is said to be caring for him following his stroke six months ago
Eamonn's much-younger girlfriend Katie Alexander has moved out of the penthouse apartment she shared with the presenter
It is perhaps telling, too, that last week Eamonn’s much-younger girlfriend Katie Alexander, 44, moved out of the penthouse apartment she shared with the TV presenter in Kingston, south-west London, with some telling me that those in Holmes’s circle were concerned that she did not have his best interests at heart.
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she → appear → heart
Some insist that they have not broken up, but have said the situation is ‘very sad’ and that Katie is ‘devastated’.
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Katie → insist → ?
And supporting him through that, too, will be his former wives.
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wives → support → that
‘For a long time Eamonn and Ruth have just been completely and entirely at odds with one another,’ the source said.
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source → say → one
‘They reached a point where they couldn’t even communicate directly.
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they → reach → point
Things became very difficult.
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Things → become → ?
It’s astonishing that she’s managed to put this behind her.
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she → ’ → her
‘You could argue Eamonn didn’t necessarily deserve it.
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Eamonn → argue → it
It’s an incredible shift.
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It → ’ → ?
But the anger appears to have thawed and has been replaced by genuine concern.’
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anger → appear → concern
The source added: ‘The thought of Ruth and Gabrielle being on good terms was just as unlikely.
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Ruth → add → terms
Yet here they all are clubbing together and rallying around with the kids to protect Eamonn.
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they → club → Eamonn
‘Ruth and Gabrielle have come through when Eamonn needed them the most.
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Eamonn → come → them
It has been a lot of pressure for Eamonn’s children and having both the support of these two women has been most helpful.
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having → have → women
For all Ruth’s generosity now, it must have taken a gargantuan effort to put the past behind her.
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it → take → her
Famously, when Ruth discovered that Eamonn had moved on from their split and was romantically involved with relationship counsellor Katie, she resorted to brutal (some might say petty) measures.
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some → discover → measures
As Eamonn prepared to go on a romantic break with Katie, Ruth methodically disabled the stair lift in their marital home so Eamonn – who, because of ongoing health difficulties, has struggled with his mobility – would not be able to go upstairs to pack clothes for the trip.
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who → prepare → trip
their divorce was said to be so toxic that at one stage they were communicating with each other only through their lawyers
Eamonn with his first wife Gabrielle and their youngest child Niall, who is now 33
Giggling as she told friends what she had done, Ruth felt Eamonn deserved to suffer an indignity of his own.
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Eamonn → say → own
Things only got worse when Ruth was forced to instruct lawyers to take her husband to court as the row over the division of their money, and the £3.2million family mansion in Weybridge, Surrey, became increasingly bitter.
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row → get → Weybridge
Eamonn and Ruth are supposed to be in court again in November over the division of their £10million joint fortune.
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Eamonn → suppose → fortune
But it is not clear whether that will still go ahead as I am told things ‘aren’t as straightforward or as simple’ as it might appear.
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it → go → ?
Those familiar with the Holmes clan say Ruth and Gabrielle were put in touch by Eamonn’s eldest children, Declan, 37, Rebecca, 35, and Niall, 33.
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Ruth → say → children
All three are very close to Ruth – who has a son, Jack, 24, with Eamonn – and expressed their concerns to her as their father’s health deteriorated.
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health → have → her
I revealed earlier this month that he has had to stand down from presenting his GB News Breakfast show.
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he → reveal → show
Eamonn’s exes and his children have also raised concerns about Katie, and her influence over him – more on which later.
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exes → raise → which
It’s perhaps no coincidence, then, that she moved out last week.
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she → ’ → ?
The unlikely alliance has led the women to instruct a prominent entertainment PR firm to act on Eamonn’s behalf.
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alliance → lead → behalf
Letters sent out by the agency, Plank PR, confirm they are now acting collectively on behalf of Eamonn, Ruth, Gabrielle and their shared children – further proof not only that this is a family committed to standing together, but that it is Ruth who has been pulling the strings to make it happen.
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it → send → strings
The agency is run by a longstanding television publicist, Lou Plank, who is also one of Ruth’s closest friends.
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who → run → friends
She had previously represented Ruth and Eamonn jointly until 2022, when Eamonn left This Morning and they parted ways.
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they → represent → ways
Just a few months later, Eamonn joined GB News and went on to take some vicious pot shots at his former employers, which embarrassed his then-wife who still worked for the network.
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who → join → network
…and 46 more, not listed.
The Aporia
