Rob Rinder hinted at romance with his good friend Rylan Clark on Sunday as he plugged the duo’s new BBC Two travel show.
During the promotion, the duo, who forged their friendship after sharing a divorce lawyer, This Morning presenter, 35, shared a sweet image with the TV judge, 45, which the latter then shared with a cryptic message.
Rob, known on TV as Judge Rinder, set tongues wagging with his response when he shared the tweet, writing: “Friendship can and often does grow into love.” Byron.. I’ll see you tonight at 9pm next to him’.
The quote from the romantic poet Lord Byron appears at the back of their travel show and follows Byron’s journey two centuries after his death.
In the original post, alongside a stunning shot of the duo in a vineyard, Rylan wrote: ‘Tonight our new show starts at 9pm on BBC Two and IPlayer…
Rob Rinder hinted at romance with his good friend Rylan Clark on Sunday as he plugged the duo’s new BBC Two travel show
During the promotion, the duo, who forged their friendship after sharing a divorce lawyer, This Morning presenter, 35, shared a sweet image with the TV judge, 45, which the latter then shared with a cryptic message.
Rob’s post sparked speculation among avid followers
‘It was so special. This man has become family to me through this experience. It really is a show like no other and we are so proud of it. I hope you enjoy x’.
Excited fans joined in the speculation about the message, with Twitter users writing: ‘Please be a couple, please be a couple, please be a couple…’
‘The perfect couple in the perfect place… Take note!… With you two in it it must be good, I bet you’re quite naughty when you’re together.’
The show of the dup is refreshingly raw new three-part TV series, which they both claim has developed into a ‘heartbreak holiday’.
After both weathering painful divorces, they were ready to embrace the next chapter in their lives by immersing themselves in experiences outside their comfort zones.
And they certainly got that on Rob & Rylan’s Grand Tour, in which they follow in the footsteps of 18th and 19th century English aristocrats who left the confines of British society behind to seek freedom and adventure during the classic gap year of the upper class – a Grand Tour through the cultural capitals of the continent.
In particular, Rob and Rylan follow the most famous Grand Tourist of them all, the Romantic poet Lord Byron, on the 200th anniversary of his death.
He traveled to Venice and then to Florence and Rome in 1816, fleeing a scandalous divorce, partly caused by him sleeping with his half-sister.
Adam Evans (leader/guide) with Rylan Clark and Rob Rinder in Venice for Rob & Rylan’s Grand Tour
“I don’t often compare myself to Byron, but I’m divorced too,” says criminal lawyer Rob, 45, best known as formidable Judge Rinder on his ITV reality courtroom show and former Strictly contestant.
He and his ex-husband, attorney Seth Cumming, divorced in 2018. “And that goes for Rylan too. And we are both looking for a new start.’
Regular This Morning presenter Rylan, who was married to ex-Met detective and reality star Dan Neal for five years before splitting in 2021, says they bonded easily.
‘You see the evolution of our friendship. We used to be just friends, but now we’re friends. We’ve both been in pain lately, so we’re taking a break from the original package tour, the Grand Tour, which is about experiencing new things.”
During their journey, Rob is keen to convert Rylan to his passion for the art, architecture and classical music that the original Grand Tourists came to Europe to experience.
Rylan jokes that “the closest I got to classical music was when Pete Tong did Ibiza dance tunes with an orchestra,” but he still immerses himself in the culture with passion.
Rylan is pictured with his ex-husband Dan Neal in June 2016
Filming their refreshingly raw new three-part TV series in Italy brought them together (file photo)