Coleen Nolan has said that she "never slagged off" her ex-husbands in front of her children following her divorces and credits that approach with a harmonious family dynamic.
The columnist, 57, made the admission during a discussion on Loose Women this afternoon about couples who get divorced, particularly those with young children.
It saw her open up about her own experiences, having divorced Shane Richie, now 58 - with whom she shares two sons - in 1999 after having married the actor back in 1990.
The mother-of-three later married Ray Fensome - with whom she shares daughter Ciara Fensome, 21 - in 2007, though the relationship led to her second divorce in 2018.
Coleen spoke about her divorces on the ITV show and said she had wanted to protect her kids throughout, including by not bad-mouthing their fathers in front of them.
She said: "The main thing for me, both times, was the protection of my kids. So I thought whatever's gone on between me and [my exes], I'm not gonna let it affect my kids. And I never did. I never slagged their dads off in front of them".
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The panelist went on to explain that such an approach has benefited the family dynamic, with her mentioning the recent wedding of her eldest son Shane Richie Jr., 33.
"It's testament to us that [...] both my ex husbands were there, [my sister] Maureen's ex husband was there, Mauren's ex partner was there, and everyone just got on," she said.
Coleen further commented: "It's because we never let it get that [bad]. No matter what had gone on between me and my exes, I really didn't let it affect me and the kids".
She had explained in the discussion that she remained in both of her marriages "probably longer than [she] should have" because of her kids and felt "guilt" getting divorced.
Coleen however suggested she felt that leaving the marriages were the best thing to do for her family and said she handled such situations "to the best of [her] ability".
Loose Women airs on ITV and ITV Hub weekdays from 12.30pm. Catch up on episodes through the ITV Hub.
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