Ruth Langsford has revealed she turned to counselling to help her cope with her painful split from ex-husband Eamonn Holmes.
The pair, familiar to millions as married co-hosts on ITV’s This Morning, announced in May 2024 that they were divorcing.
Langsford and Holmes were together for 27 years, married for 14, and share a 23-year-old son, Jack.
Holmes soon moved out of the £2.5million family home in Weybridge after their split and he starting dating relationship therapist Katie Alexander, who is 22 years his junior.
Speaking to Women & Home magazine, Ruth, 65, said: "I started counselling when Eamonn and I separated, and I'm still having it. It is very powerful and very useful. It gives me tools to deal with things.
"My counsellor has probably seen us on TV, but she doesn't know either of us so doesn't get involved and doesn't judge. She just listens and says, 'Have you thought about this?' or 'Why did you feel like that?'
"I think I know myself very well, so it has just been calming. It makes me question how I'm feeling. When my sister died, friends suggested counselling and I said, 'I don't [want] just [for someone] to tell me that I'm really sad,' and I still feel like that."
Ruth said there was a lot of “unravelling” in the final stages of the relationship, and spoke about the strain of going through a separation in the public eye.
She added that she remains open to finding love again: “Never say never. I haven't been put off having a relationship. I haven't even been put off marriage, but I'm definitely not actively looking, and part of that is because I've realised I'm actually quite good on my own. I am independent and quite strong.”
The couple have yet to finalise their divorce as they work through their financial arrangements. Ruth is reportedly upset at the prospect of having to sell the marital home, while Holmes remains locked in a tax dispute with HMRC over whether he was self-employed or effectively a disguised employee of ITV during part of his tenure on This Morning.
Earlier this week, Ruth appeared to make subtle dig at Holmes during a panel discussion on Loose Women about how partners should react to their other halves’ mental health.
On Monday’s episode, which also featured Myleene Klass, Brenda Edwards and Sue Cleaver, one of the talking points was former Prime Minister David Cameron’s revelation that he had been treated for prostate cancer.
Klass argued that men often benefit from being married because they are more likely to be pushed into seeking medical help. “It’s a well-known fact that men live longer when they’re married,” she said, adding that women “live longer when they aren’t”.
As the studio audience reacted, the camera cut to Langsford, who smirked before replying: “Good to know.” The remark, delivered with a raised eyebrow, drew laughter from her fellow panellists and immediate speculation online.
