Great British Bake Off star Paul Hollywood and his wife Alexandra have announced that they are separating, after 20 years of marriage.
The couple married in 1998, and have since had a son, Josh, who was born in October 2001.
In a statement released recently, the couple said, “It is with sadness that we have decided to separate.
“Our focus continues to be the happiness of our son… we ask the press and public to allow us privacy during this very difficult time.”
And the news comes just as reports reveal that Paul has reportedly left out any mention of Alexandra in his new Channel 4 show, Paul Hollywood: A Baker’s Life.
According to reports, the baker makes no reference to his wife in the programme, although he talks a lot about the rest of his family.
A source told The Sun, “His mum is heavily featured and he talks a lot about different relatives,
“But Paul ignored his wife and didn’t talk about her on camera at all. It felt very strange given he has spent a lot of his life with her and they have a son together.”
The couple faced difficulties during their decades long marriage, with Paul having confessed to an affair in 2013.
The baker previously admitted that he’d cheated on wife Alexandra with his co-star Marcela Valladolid, with whom he presented the US version of Bake Off.
Paul met 39-year-old Marcella in March, and shortly after the affair was revealed, his wife Alexandra filed for divorce. However, the pair eventually reconciled after a brief separation.
But following the affair, Paul described it as the “biggest mistake of my life”.
In an interview with the BBC, he continued to reveal that he “was shocked about the whole thing kicking off the way it did… but I deserved it and I’ve taken it,
“It was my punishment.”
And just a few weeks ago, rumours flew that Paul and former Bake Off winner Candice Brown had kissed at a TV event after photos circulated – however, the pair have since denied the speculation.
Paul and Alexandra met in Cyprus in 1996 at a five-star hotel, where he was employed as a baker, while she held a job as a diving instructor.
And while Alexandra may be married to one of the most famous bakers around, she’s actually also a chef in her own right too.
She has released two of her own cookbooks, My Busy Kitchen, and Cooking Tonight, and regularly hosts the cooking segment on shows including Lorraine and This Morning.
