Emma Bunton said her split from husband Jade Jones gave them time to 'grow as people' before reuniting.
The former Spice Girl, 45, began dating Jade, who was a member of the now-defunct boyband Damage, in 1998 when she was 21 and he was 19.
The couple split just one year later and then reconciled in 2000, before parting ways again in 2002, when it was rumoured that she had a fling with Justin Timberlake.
Emma and Jade got back together for good in 2004, and they have since welcomed two children - Beau and Tate - and tied the knot after 23 years together in an intimate ceremony in July 2021.
Looking back on their break-up, Emma admitted it did wonders for their relationship and said the split ‘served a purpose’ as it allowed them time to really think about what they wanted.
“It gave us time to grow as people and when we came back together it was amazing,” she said during a chat on friend Holly Willoughby ’s podcast By The Light of the Moon.
She said she instantly knew Jade was her ‘soul mate’ and immediately knew he was who she would be spending the rest of her life with.
“'It was very immediate, as soon as I looked at him I thought, ‘this is so special’,” she shared.
“He felt exactly the same. We had very magical moments very early on and we were both taken back about that,” Emma explained, noting that their relationship became ‘very intense very quickly’, prompting them to take some time away from one another to ensure their spark lasted.
“Both of us knew we wanted to be together. We're soul mates. [But] it hit us that we were so young and both of us haven't done everything, we did have a break,” Emma said.
She revealed they were both surprised by their instant connection, and revealed they both wanted to live their life before settling down.
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When asked by pal Holly if the break helped their relationship, Emma replied: “Definitely… it gave us time to grow as people and when we came back together it was amazing.”
The singer said they would’ve had a break from each other anyway as they were both due to go on tour with their respective bands, but they wanted to make the break official to make sure they knew ‘100%’ that their romance could go the distance.
“But we needed that time to go, ‘OK, I've met that person that I'm in love with and want to spend the rest of my life with, what do I kind of need to do in this little time just to explore and know it's 100%?'’ It worked a treat,” she added.
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