Chloe Madeley reveals she will spend Christmas with James Haskell – two months after they announced their shock split – and admits 'she's the happiest single'

Chloe Madeley and James Haskall will spend Christmas together, two months after announcing their shock split.

Chloe, 36, spoke exclusively in her first sit-down chat since the break-up of their marriage, telling MailOnline about her 'normal Christmas' plan for the sake of 16-month-old daughter Bodhi, which would involve seeing the former England rugby star. 38.

And Chloe insists that being single for the first time in almost a decade is far from intimidating, admitting that some of her most 'successful' and 'happiest' times of her career and personal life came when she didn't have a partner.

Chloe, daughter of TV presenting duo Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, said: 'Christmas is going to be a real family affair, it's me, my mum and dad, Bodhi and James.

“That will be nice because I want Bodhi to have as much of a real sense of family and togetherness at Christmas as possible and it's important for both James and I to do that.

“We don't know how long we can keep doing this, but we will do it as long as we can.

“I want Bodhi to have not only a strong sense of father and mother, but also a strong sense of family as a unit.”

And about being single at Christmas, she added: 'People may find this hard to believe, but I'm in a really good situation.

'I think back to the times in my life where I've achieved the most in terms of my career and where I've been happiest in my personal life, and that's always been when I was single, so I'm not that nervous about the next chapter.

'I have Bodhi, who I call my 'funnel of love'. I can just direct love to her and get it back, so I feel pretty solid and safe and okay with it all.”

Chloe and James confirmed their split in October, shortly before the end of her new ITVBe reality show – Chloe Madeley: A Family Affair – which was a hit with viewers and critics alike.

They were praised for being “real” on screen and refusing to edit out bickering and big fights, even though airing those scenes led to concerns that their five-year marriage was in trouble.

Chloe says she felt it was important for the former on-screen couple to stay true to themselves as they wanted to dispel the belief that they had a perfect relationship, which many of their social media followers believed they had.

She explained, “It's funny because for a long time James and I were #couplegoals on Instagram all the time, but people really like the authenticity that you saw on the show and how we're very much ourselves, but obviously that didn't work out . Oh yeah.'

She added: 'I've always really struggled with anxiety and one of the ways I tackle it – and it makes you sick to your mouth – is to always be the most authentic version of myself.

'It really bites me in the ass, but it's the only thing I can really do to stay ahead of any concerns.'

Chloe and James may have officially announced their divorce in October, but they actually split over the summer.

Fitness trainer and nutritionist Chloe admitted she partied hard after the split because she wanted to spend time with her friends, her close-knit group of fellow Londoners who helped her through those 'tough' few months.

And she has let off so much steam, Chloe says she has now 'partied out' and will not be going to bars and clubs in the run-up to Christmas.

She said: 'I've been partying a bit. I've canceled the next two Christmas parties I have to go to.

'When everything happened between James and I, I just wanted to be surrounded by women and me and my friends are party girls and we like to go out, dance, get p****d and have fun.

'I've had a good four or five weeks to go out and let my hair down, and now I'm kind of done with it.

'I just want to be in my living room with my Christmas tree and my baby, putting on Christmas movies and drinking red wine.

“This is what I want my December to look like.”

She added: 'I wasn't trying to party away my pain and look for men, I just wanted to be with my girlfriends.

'But I just don't have it in me to keep partying anymore. I'm 36 now, I'm getting old. I don't have a one-day hangover anymore, it's more like three days.'

Spending time with James at Christmas will bring back memories of when Chloe first introduced him to her famous parents on Boxing Day 2014.

And the rugby star's first conversation with her Good Morning Britain star dad Richard, who was preparing dinner at the time, will never be forgotten.

She recalled, “My dad told James to fuck off.”

'He really felt like he had insulted my father, but I thought, “No, that's Kitchen Dickie, he's a psychopath.”

'My father cooks Christmas dinner every year. He gets so stressed about no one being allowed in the kitchen that he turns into a Gordon Ramsay-style kitchen madman.

“I always offer to cook because I love cooking and it relaxes me, it calms me down, and he says, 'no, no,' because the kitchen is very much his domain.”

Richard, 67, made numerous cameos on Chloe's ITVBe show, including when she and James visited her parents' holiday home in the south of France.

And it's likely we'll see more family ties on screen, as Chloe confirmed she's in talks with ITV about shooting a follow-up series – including James.

Chloe added: 'We are currently in discussions with ITV – the production company and I – telling them what my New Year will look like and what they can get in terms of filming.

“James wouldn't be as involved and that's a conversation I've had with him but I still think he should present to some extent and I asked him if he would like to do that and he said that he would like that.

'One of the things James and I enjoyed was that the show forced us to spend time as a family, especially when he was so busy – he was rarely in London – and we had some fantastic experiences in front of the camera.

'I had that growing up, I had my first injection, swimming lessons and a holiday on This Morning, and it's wonderful and I'm glad Bodhi is going to get that too.'