Linda Robson's bumpy love life from 'first love cheat' to celibate marriage
Celebrity Antiques Road Trip viewers are in for a treat tonight as Loose Women co-hosts and friends Linda Robson and Brenda Edwards hit the shops in Hertfordshire with a £400 budget for bargains. Brenda, 65, has been on screens since she shot to fame as Tracey Stubbs in the popular sitcom Birds of a Feather.
While she's been delighting fans for over three decades, she's had a number of personal battles off-screen. The TV star has been with her husband of 33 years, Mark Dunford, however she has previously admitted that things between them 'weren't plain-sailing at the moment' and that she even considers herself 'celibate.'
Despite rumours of a separation, the presenter insisted: "We’re still living together. We both love our kids more than anything else in the world, obviously you have a few hiccups in every marriage. We've been married 33 years so it’s not going to be all plain sailing, but we’re still together at the moment."
During a separate chat on the ITV daytime show, the panellist confessed that she and Mark hadn't had sex in two years, but that it doesn't bother her. "Can I just say I've been celibate for two years?" she began, "I can't be a**** with all that [romance stuff]. I'm just happy going out with my mates and my children and my grandchildren."
Linda and Mark, who tied the knot in 1990 and live in London together, share children Louis, 31, and Roberta, 27. The mum also has an older daughter, Lauren, 40, with her ex Tony Tyler, whom she describes as her 'first love'. Not much is known about her ex but the pair were together for 11 years and welcomed their daughter before parting ways.
Strictly's Molly Rainford and Tyler West fuel romance rumours while on tourIn 2016, Linda opened up on her heartbreak following her first love cheating on her. Speaking of her regret at how long she let her "serial cheat" ex be unfaithful, she said: "I caught him lots and lots of times, probably my biggest regret is that I didn't finish it earlier. The strange thing was there was a family do not too long ago, and he actually blamed me for the break-up."
She revealed how he went on to blame her for always being away for work for his infidelity. However, she furiously said at the time that the excuse was a 'lie' anyway, saying she "was always there". In another segment of Loose Women, where the panel discussed the idea of how quickly they would move on and remarry after splitting up with a long-term partner, Linda was quizzed on her thoughts following her split from the father of her eldest.
"It took me a long time to get over that because that was my first love," admitted Linda. "But I feel like I don't really need a partner to love because I've got my children, my grandchildren, my sisters and my friends..."
Celebrity Antiques Road Trip airs tonight on BBC Two at 7pm.