Ben Ofoedu has posted on social media for the first time since his partner of 16 years, Vanessa Feltz, revealed that the couple had split.
The Phats & Small singer, who is 10 years younger than Feltz, shared a large broken heart emoji on his Instagram Stories on Monday (6 February).
It comes after Feltz, 60, said she was “disappointed and shocked” over the end of their relationship.
In an Instagram video post on Sunday (5 February), the TV presenter told her followers that it was “over” between her and Ofoedu, adding: “I feel incredibly sad and I’m pretty disappointed and shocked and all those horrible things, but also full of resolve. I am not going to let this defeat me.”
She confirmed the split to The Sun on Sunday, explaining that “once the trust in a relationship is gone, it can never be repaired or regained”.
“Who knew I’d be single at 60? However, ladies, it’s onwards and upwards, and I firmly believe the best is yet to come,” she told the newspaper.
The TalkTV presenter also addressed the breakup during her show on Monday and said her heart was broken in “a million pieces”.
She told viewers: “I can’t be the only person in the country nursing a broken heart, can I? I am absolutely determined to put my best foot forward, to keep on trucking, all that sort of stuff.
“Having said all of this, obviously inside I’m feeling all sorts of things, no questions about it. Very hurt, very sad, terribly disappointed, worried about the future, all the normal stuff – of course I am.”
Feltz and Ofoedu first met in 2005 following her divorce from Michael Kurer five years earlier.
The pair became engaged a year later and remained engaged since.
Recently, Feltz spoke candidly about the challenges posed by the age gap between her and Ofoedu.
She told The Sunday Times: “Don’t let anyone tell you the age gap doesn’t matter. It’s bloody annoying and it gets worse, especially as our relationship coincided with acres of the menopause, which started on my very first day presenting the Radio 2 breakfast show [in 2011] with a massive hot flush at 4am and is still going on.”