Helen Skelton has announced that she will front the second series of BBC One daytime show Lost and Found in the Lakes, amid growing speculation that she’s in a romance with former colleague Gethin Jones. But are the rumours true?
The pair were reportedly spotted leaving the TV BAFTAs together on May 11, following weeks of playful back-and-forth comments on Instagram.
But is a romantic relationship budding? Here is everything you need to know
Are Gethin Jones and Helen Skelton in a relationship?
Skelton, 41, and Jones, 47, are rumoured to have developed a deep connection after becoming friends while co-hosting BBC One’s Morning Live.
On May 12, Skelton posted a series of photos with Jones from the awards ceremony, leading him to jokingly comment, “Why do you keep chopping my head off,” referring to her cropping skills.
Jones also spoke highly of “superhuman” Skelton, following a 24-hour live TV challenge they took part in for Comic Relief.
In a comment, he praised Skelton’s “unbelievable physical and mental resilience,” remarking that she “loves a laugh” but is also “a deep thinker.”
“It says a lot that you can spend 24 hours non-stop with someone and still call them an hour later for a debrief,” he wrote.
“Respect means we can be honest with each other always. There was NO time at all, at any time during this challenge, not one, where I wanted to throw her off the rink. Never once. Didn’t even come into mind.”
Skelton seemed to share Jones’ enthusiasm. “My dear @gethincjones... You are some man,” she wrote.
“I don't publicly say often enough how much love and respect I have for you my friend because I assume it is well known, but for the record you're a legend and I am beyond grateful to have you by my side on the rink, the sofa and beyond.”
Jones also commented three heart emojis on a behind-the-scenes reel that a makeup artist posted of the pair’s charity challenge.
Skelton and Jones, who have both previously competed on Strictly Come Dancing and hosted Blue Peter, are thought to be single.
What have others said?
This week, rumours have been swirling about the pair’s alleged “deeper connection.” A source told the MailOnline: “Helen and Gethin have an extremely close working relationship and there's a feeling in recent months their friendship has blossomed into a deeper connection.
“They're both keen to keep a lid on it to avoid public scrutiny but there's no denying their closeness both on and off screen.”
Last April, the duo attended the Burrow Strictly Ball, a special Strictly Come Dancing themed charity event, and appeared to be particularly close with one another.
A source told the Daily Mail: “It was very clear that Skelton and Jones were together as a couple at the event, they were with close friends of Helen's and their connection was undeniable.”
The Daily Mail also commented on a photo in which Jones appeared to be touching Skelton’s hands, at the TV Choice awards.
A source said to MailOnline: “Helen and Gethin have been able to attend events together without much fanfare purely because they're work colleagues.”
Fans have long commented on the onscreen chemistry between the two presenters, with some Morning Live viewers describing them as a “perfect couple.”
Last week, BBC Morning Live shared a photo of the duo on their Instagram page, prompting an outburst of comments about the pair’s relationship status.
“Perfect couple 😍 they should become an item,” one user wrote.
“They look more like a romantic couple than colleagues,” another user speculated.
What have they said?
Despite the flurry of speculation, neither Skelton nor Jones has publicly addressed the relationship rumours.
Who have they previously dated?
Helen Skelton
Richie Myler
Skelton was married to the former rugby player Richie Myler for eight years. The couple had three children together: Ernie, nine, Louis, eight, and Elise, three, before splitting in 2022.
Following their separation, she posted on Instagram that Myler had “left the family home,” four months after the birth of their youngest child, Elise.
“I was in shock,” Skelton wrote in her memoir, In My Stride, “I know that following break-ups, people often say they didn't see it coming and it sounds like a cliché, but that was me.”
Myler has since had two children with his new partner, Stephanie Thirkill. Skelton has reportedly been single since the split.
Gethin Jones
Katherine Jenkins
Gethin Jones has never married, but he was once engaged, to the Welsh opera star Katherine Jenkins. In 2020, Classic FM, named Jenkins, a former fashion model, the best-selling classical albums artist of the 21st century.
The couple dated for four years from 2007, and Jones proposed in Feburary 2011. However, the couple broke it off in December that year.
Jones revealed that he experienced a “bad bout of depression” after the split.
“I was engaged and then breaking up, afterwards, or even during that period, it was just awful,” he said on the Mirror’s Outdoors in Mind podcast.
“I remember doing BBC Radio 5Live and going into the toilet at 5.30am going, ‘All right. Come on. Just focus for the next three hours, and then you can go back to being sad again.’ I definitely had a bad bout of depression during that time.”
"I was waiting for a friend to tell me what to do and they can't do that. It puts so much pressure on them... you need to figure it out yourself.
"I saw someone, I had therapy for a couple of years and I still do my homework on that."
Jenkins also appeared to be emotionally affected by the split. "At the end of 2011, when Gethin and I broke up, the reality of it was that, about two weeks later, I had to go on a UK tour where every night I'm singing songs of heartbreak,” she said in a documentary.
"And every day just trying to find the energy to cope – let alone going on stage and understand his reason for doing it.”
"Meanwhile, everybody else is under the impression it was my decision, my ambition – I wanted to take over the world. It was so far from the truth."
Lucie Mecklenburgh
In 2014, Jones is reported to have dated former The Only Way Is Essex star Lucie Mecklenburgh. However, she implied to new! magazine that the couple weren’t official. “We’re not dating. We went out a few times a while ago but it was bad timing for both of us.
“I was so busy after Tumble and he travels a lot, so it wasn’t the best time.”
Katja Zwar
Jones went on to date German model Katja Zwara. They reportedly slit up in 2018 due to busy work schedules.
Cici Coleman
In 2023, Jones reportedly dated First Dates star Cici Coleman. The pair were reported to have gone for drinks at the Apollo Theatre, followed by Soho’s famous Groucho Club.
A source said to The Sun: “They’ve grown close and have been spending time together.”
Coleman rose to fame after working as a waitress on Channel 4’s First Dates, aged 28.
