Ashley Banjo and his wife Francesca Banjo have announced that they have been separated for over a year, with them sharing the news in a joint statement.
The former couple – who had been together for more than a decade – said that their "main focus" will continue to be their children Rose, three, and Micah, two.
The statement was shared by both Ashley, 33 – best known for being in dance troupe Diversity – and Francesca with their respective followers on Instagram.
It stated that the pair had taken the "difficult decision" to separate 18 months ago. The former couple said that they now felt as though "it [was] the time to share the news".
Relationship
Ashley and Francesca had been in a relationship for more than 16 years. They said in the recent statement that they began dating when they were teenagers.
He once revealed that he had taken her to the Science Museum in London for their first date back in 2005, writing about the experience in a previous post on Instagram.
"I couldn't drive, so I took [her] on a date to the science museum to try and make her laugh and impress her with how much I knew about the nerdiest subjects possible instead," he said.
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Francesca is a fellow dancer and showbiz industry talent manager. She's been in dance troupe Out Of The Shadows, whom Ashley has created choreography for over the years.
The all-female group regularly perform at large events and have even represented brands such as Adidas and River Island. They have been described as "dynamic" and "entertaining".
Ashley and Francesca tied the knot back on July 4, 2015 after the pair had been dating for 10 years. They wed at a beautiful Essex venue with Ashley sharing pictures of the day on social media.
Writing about her in a post for Valentine's Day once, Ashley described her as his "best friend". He had further commented in the post: "[I] love her more than she knows".
He added: "Among other things she's also a PA, an honest opinion, a lost property detector, an oven for babies, an OCD pillow plumper and a life-size hot water bottle."
Family
Ashley – known for appearing on Britain’s Got Talent and Dancing On Ice – has two children with Francesca. The former couple's first child Rose was born back in 2019.
Ashley couldn't hold back his pride as he announced his daughter's arrival, writing at the time: "Our beautiful daughter came into the world at 6.45pm on 21st February 2019 – weighing a healthy 8lbs and 13oz.
"Her name is Rose Adura Banjo. I am in the deepest love ever with my little family."
Their second child, Micah Grace, was born on March 26, 2020.
Taking to Instagram again following his son's birth, he wrote: "On Thursday the 26th March at 6.45pm our son came into the world weighing a healthy 8lbs 15oz. His name is Micah Grace Banjo...
"Our son, our little ray of light in a dark and uncertain time. @francescabanjo and I love him with the deepest part of our hearts."
Separation
Ashley and Francesca announced their separation in a joint statement that was uploaded to social media this evening (December 22).
They said: "After much thought and consideration we both feel now is the time to share some personal news. Nearly 18 months ago we took the difficult decision to separate.
"After being together for over 16 years, since we were teenagers, this is not a decision that has been taken lightly.
"It has not been easy and the processing of the situation has not been fast by any means. But we feel that as we approach the new year it is time to share this news with others."
They continued: "Our main focus will always be our beautiful children. Every decision that has been made is to make sure we can continue as a loving family and give the very best of ourselves as parents.
"Raising Rose and Micah in a healthy and happy environment is the most important thing to both of us.
"Sometimes after so many years people just move in different directions, but we do so lovingly and we continue to try and be both the best parents possible and the best of friends to each other.
"We have always been private with our personal lives, so we kindly ask that everyone please continue to respect that privacy."
