Revealed: Strains that ended Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford’s marriage. She felt ‘more carer than wife’ while he is ‘furious’. Read the full details in KATIE HIND’S exclusive report

Television’s golden couple, Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford, have split after 27 years together and 14 years of marriage.

A statement from the couple yesterday revealed that the former This Morning presenters are divorcing after work commitments ‘took their marriage in a different direction’.

The pair were still living together at their £3.2million home in Weybridge, Surrey, until recently, and are ‘committed to remaining friends and keeping things amicable’. He has now moved.

The spokesperson added: ‘Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes have confirmed their marriage is over and they are in the process of divorcing.’

While the news will likely come as a big surprise to their fans, rumors have been circulating for several months that their relationship was in trouble.

Sources also claim that Eamonn is furious about the split and that the split was ‘heavily orchestrated by Ruth’.

The Mail on Sunday can reveal that yesterday’s statement – far from being a joint effort – was in fact arranged by Ruth, with Eamonn, 64, refusing to get involved. He reportedly told friends that he “didn’t want to get involved” and that “Ruth can do whatever she wants but keep me out of it.”

It is understood he was against making the news public after months of trying to save his marriage. However, Ruth was determined to run away.

Both Eamonn and Ruth have denied that there have been any problems with their relationship in recent months, although friends of the couple say that the marriage has actually been over for at least a year.

One source who knows the Irish star said Eamonn would become ‘very angry indeed’ if questioned about the truth of his marriage.

“His language became really rude,” they said. “He had a hard time accepting it.”

Another source added: ‘Eamonn’s favorite way was not to tell anyone. Deep down he knew that things couldn’t go on like this, but he kind of buried his head in the sand. He is very upset indeed.”

Fans are now wondering what could possibly have caused the end of what has long been considered one of the strongest relationships in British showbusiness.

Friends say the couple has been tested by health, financial and professional issues in recent issues – and that “something had to give.”

In particular, Ruth has struggled to cope with Eamonn’s painful back due to hernias and a fall at home in 2022.

Speaking to Woman’s Weekly magazine, the 64-year-old Loose Women presenter admitted his injuries were ‘testing’ as they tried to ‘get by as a family’.

She added: ‘I don’t know how much Eamonn’s mobility will improve. We live in hope.

‘He’s doing the physio, but perhaps there needs to be some acceptance that this may never be 100 per cent right. In any healthcare situation – and there are millions of healthcare providers in this country – it’s not always easy.”

The truth is, says a friend, that Ruth has become ‘more of a carer than a wife’ as the Belfast-born star became ‘increasingly grumpy’.

“Eamonn was thoroughly miserable,” they added. ‘He’s had a really hard time with his health, he’s in constant pain, and the truth is he can’t fathom how miserable it makes him.

‘He’s a great presenter and a real professional, so he turns it on when the cameras start rolling, but just before and after that he’s on painkillers and undergoing treatments to get through the day.

“Ruth has faced a lot of anger and frustration over the years – and eventually something had to be done.

‘She is still a woman with a real zest for life and eventually it started to depress her more than she could accept.

‘She needs her own life. It’s a case where she wants to get out and enjoy herself. Women at Ruth’s age realize they only have ten, twenty, thirty years left and they want to have some fun.

‘They go out, get fit, look great and go out and have the time of their lives. Meanwhile, the men stay at home grumpy.’

The friend added: ‘The couple still live under the same roof but sleep in separate rooms – with Ruth increasingly acting more like a carer than a wife.

“She runs around and makes him lunch, despite their fraught relationship.

‘In the meantime, he sits uncomfortably in a chair, limited in mobility by chronic back pain, sometimes requiring daily physiotherapy sessions.’

It is understood that Eamonn has even joked to friends that he has been ‘affected’ far more by his physio than by Ruth in recent years.

However, a friend of the presenter yesterday insisted that Ruth ‘makes him sad’.

He added: “Ruth is on his case and tells him to start walking but he doesn’t put it on.

‘He is in constant pain. It’s not that easy for him.’

Eamonn’s fight with the taxman hasn’t really lifted his mood either, friends add.

In January the presenter revealed how he was forced to sell his beloved East Belfast home to pay off a huge bill following a £250,000 tax battle with HMRC.

He had been at war with the agency for more than five years after tax officials ruled he was a staffer at the broadcasters rather than a freelancer.

He was then allegedly asked to pay additional taxes and national insurance for ten years.

Friends also say professional reasons for the split should not be underestimated.

The pair were once widely regarded as ‘the new Richard and Judy’ – the original presenters of This Morning – at ITV and stepped in to host the lunchtime show on Fridays, as well as cover Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby when they were on holiday.

But they were axed from the show in 2021 after a series of blunders by Eamonn as he cast doubt on media outlets debunking the myth that 5G causes coronavirus live on air.

Much loved by ITV, Ruth was retained as presenter of Loose Women.

In response to his ouster, Eamonn accused channel heads of hypocrisy and claimed those running the show are ‘middle-aged white executives’.

He told Weekend magazine in 2022: ‘When are they going to become diverse with their management? The diversity can only be seen on the screen. It’s hypocritical.’

A friend of Ruth’s said: ‘The whole thing was quite embarrassing for her. The row with ITV bosses proved hugely difficult for Ruth, who remained an employee with her role in Loose Women and other shows.

‘It made her feel very angry and of course raised fears that his outbursts could damage her career. Luckily, she’s so adored that she’s still a regular on Loose Women, which gives her plenty of work.’

A friend of Eamonn even pointed to the show as the reason behind Ruth’s decision to end her marriage.

‘There is such a thing as the Curse of Loose [Women]they added. ‘Similar to the Strictly Curse, there are several stars whose marriages have ended. You can’t help but think something is going on here.’

Birds of a Feather actress Linda Robson and journalist Jane Moore have both ended their marriages in the past two years, while Coleen Nolan – a mainstay on the lunchtime panel show – is known for her ‘awkward’ love life.

It is understood that some ITV bosses had even hoped that Ruth would agree to announce the split live on the show, but Ruth refused as she knew how much that would irritate Eamonn.

It’s a long way from their star-studded wedding in June 2010, when they had been together for 13 years.

As well as their son Jack, now 22 but then eight, the newlyweds were joined by friends including Royle Family star Sue Johnston, TV presenters Gloria Hunniford, Amanda Lamb and Jeremy Kyle, EastEnders actress Zoe Lucker and former champion boxer Barry McGuigan and it was such a lavish affair that they sold the rights to Hello magazine, making it a two-part issue.

Eamonn was so overjoyed that he took to Twitter – now

‘Although it was truly a stunningly beautiful day, even the sun was overshadowed by my beautiful bride, who I love even more than before.’

There were undoubtedly clues if you looked closely.

It is telling that last June, when Ruth was enjoying one of the most vindictive moments of his 45-year career – winning best breakfast show at the prestigious TRIC Awards – he was conspicuously absent.

The fact that he was hobbling on crutches after a herniated disc in his back and a fall at home a year earlier made her decision not to be by his side all the more curious. Instead, his new ‘television wife’ Isabel Webster was alongside him at the annual event at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London’s Mayfair.

“That was a real moment for Eamonn,” said a friend of his. ‘He won an award for his role on GB News, it was a moment where he could both smugly and enthusiastically stick two fingers up at his former employers at ITV after his super acrimonious departure from the channel.

‘But Ruth was there as he dragged himself to the stage on a walking stick, in front of friends and industry colleagues. It was then that all the rumors circulating began to make sense. She was with him the year before.”

Separately, he has been pictured partying and enjoying a day out with friends at horse racing.

Another clue is that they have failed to wish each other happy birthday on their public social media accounts namely Instagram. Since joining the platform eight years ago, they have celebrated the occasion with a message to each other. That didn’t happen last year.

In fact, they haven’t posted photos of each other on their accounts in over a year.