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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Victoria Johns

EastEnders' Emma Barton's wild love life: Stephen Mulhern to co-star as she dates 90s rocker

EastEnders' Emma Barton is said to be "smitten" with 90s rocker Jason Perry after their secret romance was rumbled.

The pair have reportedly been dating for months, leaving a string of sweet messages on each other's Instagram pages.

Emma, 44, who has played Honey Mitchell in EastEnders on and off since 2005, prefers to keep her relationships out of the limelight.

But her love life is anything but dull, having enjoyed a number of star-studded romances, including one with her co-star - and another with Stephen Mulherne.

So, as new boyfriend Jason pays tribute to the 'gorgeous lady who's made him happy', here's the low down on Emma's wild love life.

Marriage heartbreak

Emma shot to fame when she joined EastEnders as Honey Edwards in 2005, but the actress was going through a painful divorce as she made her mark on Albert Square.

She married lawyer Nigel Stoat in 2002, but their relationship broke down three years later.

The former couple were said to be "devastated" by the split with a friend of the pair telling The People at the time they had 'desperately wanted things to work out'.

"Ultimately it was Emma who decided they couldn't go on," the source said.

"It hasn't been easy on either of them."

The actress is currently dating Jason Perry (Youtube)

Hunky cop Harry

After Emma left her lawyer husband, she was introduced to policeman Harry Waddington by his sister, who starred with the actress in the West End musical, Grease.

A source at the time said: "Quite a few eyebrows have risen at the speed in which she has found romance though. But she and Harry seem really happy together".

A representative for the soap star told the Mirror the reports were a "a private matter between Emma and her family."

Her ex husband Nigel and Harry declined to comment.

Co-star crush

EastEnders' Jamie Borthwick, who plays Jay Brown in EastEnders admitted he had a huge crush on Emma when they shared screen time.

“I was about 14 when I first set eyes on Emma Barton,” the star told TV Times.

“I fell in love with her long, shapely legs and I wanted to marry her.”

However, Emma admitted she simply saw her co-star as a "baby brother", telling the Sun "Aww my Jamie, so this would have been 12 years ago.

"He used to kiss me on set and say to me, before I went in, good luck, Em, good luck, Em."

EastEnders' Joel Beckett

In 2007, Emma began dating her EastEnders co-star, Joel Beckett, who played heartthrob Jake Moon.

She dated Joel for two years (Getty Images)

Joel, who left the soap in 2006, also reportedly dated Jessie Wallace, who played Kat Slater.

He and Emma were said to have enjoyed a two year romance before calling it a day in 2009.

A source told the Mirror the couple split amicably, with a friend saying at the time: "Emma is making the most of being single".

Stephen Mulherne

However, with her stunning looks and bubbly personality, Emma wasn't single for long.

She began dating Catchphrase Stephen Mulherne in 2008 when they met on the set of Snow White.

Despite keeping tight-lipped about their romance, the couple stayed together for three years, before finally calling it a day in 2011.

When asked why they'd decided to break up, all Stephen would say was that the relationship had come to its "natural end".

Since her romance with Stephen ended, Emma has kept details of her private life concealed - until she popped up on new boyfriend Jason's Insta and fans went into meltdown.

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