Christine and Paddy McGuinness have announced they've separated and despite the news coming as a shock to many, the pair have had an extremely tough year.
The couple had been married for 11 years but together for 14 years, and have now decided to part ways - making the announcement today on Instagram.
We take a look into the struggles the couple have faced in the last year.
Christine's autism diagnoses:
Last year, Christine opened up about being diagnosed with autism after their three children twins Leo and Penelope and Felicity also have the condition.
Christine was diagnosed in August 2021 after her and Paddy completed a test which she scored high in. Paddy told Christine he wasn't surprised with the diagnosis and had suspected it for years but didn't know how to approach the subject.
However, Christine felt like a weight had been lifted as she had always struggled with certain things. The mum-of-three left school without any GCSEs due to finding it difficult to be in an exam hall.
She opened up in her book, Christine McGuinness: A Beautiful Nightmare, that she was capable of sitting exams but she struggled with the environment of an exam hall.
However, she now sees it as a positive thing in her life. She had described herself as creative and artistic as well as being open minded and kind.
Despite Paddy and Christine not yet telling their children that they're autistic, Christine said her own diagnoses will now help when they eventually do talk to them about it.
Busy work schedules:
Being in the public eye, both Paddy and Christine have busy work schedules. Paddy is one of the main presenters of Top Gear which sees him travel around the world completing challenges.
Christine is now a household name and regularly appears on TV and takes part in various shows. Most recently the star took part in ITV's The Games where a celebrity line-up took on Olympic style sports. She has also stripped off for ITV ’s Strictly The Real Full Monty.
Separation announcement:
Following a few weeks of speculation, Paddy and Christine announced that they had decided to separate.
There were rumours that the pair were going through a tough time in their relationship which Christine confirmed in an appearance on ITV's Lorraine. The couple posted a statement on their Instagram stories that said: "We hadn’t planned on sharing this publicly until we were ready but after the lack of privacy surrounding our personal life, we feel left with no other option but to clarify.
"A while ago we took the difficult decision to separate but our main focus as always is to continue loving and supporting our children. This was not an easy decision to make but we’re moving forward as the best parents we can be for our three beautiful children. We’ll always be a loving family, we still have a great relationship and still live happily in our family home together."
They added: "We hope this now draws a line under anymore unwanted and unnecessary intrusion into our private life. Although we work in the public eye we ask kindly if you could respect our wishes for privacy on this matter. We’ll be making no further comment.
"Loads of love. Paddy & Christine."
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