'You will come out the other side' - Zoe Ball on the 'overwhelming' anticipation of divorce

In a well-known colloquialism, sometimes it’s better to just rip the band-aid off - but Zoe Ball spoke openly about how it’s not always that simple when it comes to divorce.

Zoe, along with friend and co-host Jo Whiley are known for their candour and their openness on their Dig It podcast, and together they’ve addressed topics in the past ranging from dating after divorce to grieving for a parent.

In a recent episode, the pair turned their attention to the topic of divorce, or rather, that feeling when you know your marriage isn’t working and anticipating the divorce conversations needing to be had.

Describing it as "scary" and "overwhelming" knowing what will come after you bring up talk of divorce, Zoe said, "You try everything and then you just think this is not working.

"Then the anticipation of coming out with it and saying to your partner, 'right, this is the time', is so scary because it's overwhelming on all fronts."

She added, "You're worrying about the kids. You're worrying about your partner. You're worrying about you and how it will all work out."

Zoe, who divorced Norman ‘Fatboy Slim’ Cook in 2016, after 17 years of marriage, was more than happy to share some details from her own journey to send a message of hope to any listeners who might be going through it themselves.

She said, "Something I can tell you from personal experience is, yes, it is a lot to go through, but you will come out the other side of it. And the fact that you know you need to do this, you will all be better in the end."

This isn’t the first time Zoe has broached the topic of her divorce. On a previous episode of the podcast (September 2025), Zoe responded to a listener’s question about co-parenting.

"My parents split up. It kind of really broke my heart to get divorced because the thing I did not want for my kids is what happened to me," she said.

"So when Norm and I split up, we were still friends, and it took time, but one of our things was, we've got to do right by the kids, and we've got to make this work for them.

"It doesn't matter what us two are going through, it's got to be good for those kids."

She added, "I'm very grateful to have an ex who is wonderful, and he's a great dad, and we've made it work. We do things together with the kids. Birthdays, we always do things at school, and we'll spend time together. It's a bit trial and error.

"It's so heart-breaking having that conversation with your kids, but I've always made a point of, we'll talk about these things.

"Of course, they don't always understand when they're young. Sometimes, you can't even explain it yourself. It's really hard telling kids...as the kids get older, they start to look at you and go, oh yeah, I can see."