Popular television host Ant McPartlin has admitted that it was his "addictions" after an "insane" binge of tramadol, morphine and alcohol following a second knee operation which ultimately broke his marriage for good.
The Geordie TV icon has had teenage fans lusting after him for years as he's fronted the country's most popular television shows, particularly during his and his sidekick Declan Donnelly's Smash Hits era where the 'randy' star apparently hooked up with women everywhere from "golf courses, nightclub lavatories, kitchen floors".
But all that came to an abrupt halt when Ant fell for Deuce star Lisa Armstrong on the 1994 Smash Hits tour, reports the Independent. Ant was only 18 when he was "instantly attracted" to a then 17-year-old singer Lisa and the two were apparently head over heels by the end of the tour.
In a rare interview with The Mirror, make-up artist Lisa admitted his good looks made her feel "all gooey".
"I've always felt relaxed with him," she said in 2006, ahead of their wedding. "And when we met there was something about his hair and eyes that made me feel all gooey."
"I met the love of my life, Lisa Armstrong, she was the most amazing thing that ever happened to me... She was beautiful, she had a great sense of fun, and she was different from any girl I'd ever met," Ant gushed in his autobiography, Ooh! What A Lovely Pair.
After 11 years, Ant finally popped the question in Dubai in 2005, with a £16,000 square-cut diamond ring from Tiffany, and they tied the knot 14 months later in a star-studded ceremony in Buckinghamshire.
The couple had fears that their age was against them as they battled fertility struggles, and in 2014 Ant suffered a torn meniscus in his knee which left him immobile and in near-constant agony. For two years the severely depressed star abused opioids and booze.
Admitting when things took a wrong turn, Ant told The Sun: "It was five in the morning and I was screaming in pain so I rang Lisa. "She was upstairs because I was living in the living room because I couldn't get around.
"I was insane. It sends you crazy. It was to the point of hearing things, seeing things in the garden and still the pain was getting worse."
Despite admitting he'd put Lisa 'through hell' with his 'mood swings', while his loyal wife stood by him, Ant refused to move back in with her after his stint in rehab.
Lisa kept her wedding ring on and publicly dismissed rumours they were 'estranged' while pals of Ant's accused the former disco dancer of being in denial at the split.
Ant released a solo statement in January 2018 confirming he'd left Lisa, and six months later he stepped out with their former PA, Anne-Marie Corbett.
Lisa was devastated and hit out on Twitter, accusing her former friend of breaking the 'girl code' as the divorce from Ant grew increasingly messy, the TV star revealed the pair cut all contact and were only communicating through their lawyers.
Ant and Anne-Marie tied the knot at St Michael's Church in Hampshire in August 2021, with him now being a stepdad to her two girls.
The Geordie TV star credited Anne-Marie with being "the fundamental reason for the great change in my life" following his drink-driving charge in 2018.
He told The Sun: "She's been my rock. She's a beautiful soul. We're very happy. I'm in the best place I've been in my life, to be honest with you. It's great."
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