It's been just over a year since the 'Wagatha Christie' saga culminated in one of the most highly- publicised court showdowns of all time.
Insults were hurled, damning evidence was unearthed and even more explosive allegations were made before Rebekah Vardy’s defamation case against Coleen Rooney was finally dismissed. Coleen had won. And after four years of maintaining a dignified silence following her initial bombshell tweet in October 2019 – when she openly accused Rebekah of leaking stories about her – Coleen, 37, finally told her side of the story last week.
Embracing her alter-ego as a WAG-turned-amateur sleuth in a Sherlock-inspired rain mac for her photo-shoot with Vogue, mum-of-four Coleen didn’t hold back as she branded Becky, 41, “odd” for bringing the trial to court in the first place, and admitted that she had kept her plans to tweet her dynamite accusation a complete secret, even from husband Wayne.
Confessing that she had been left feeling sick and angry after discovering the truth following five months of weeding out Rebekah through a carefully thought-out plan of posting ‘fake news’ on her social media, Coleen admitted she was suddenly “struck” by the fear that Rebekah had been trying to get close to her for years to boost her celebrity profile.
She said, “Over time, as all this was going on, things like that came back and struck me. I thought, ‘Has there always been a plan to get closer to me?’”
However, Coleen revealed that all of the bravery it took to publicly accuse Rebekah had melted away by the time the court trial rolled around in November 2020 – an experience she described as “horrible”.
Opening up about the emotional turmoil the stress had inflicted on her and football legend Wayne and their sons (Kai, 13, Klay, 10, Kit, seven, and Cass, five), Coleen recalled how Wayne told her he “felt like I wasn’t me anymore” and how she had cried so much that her dad had been concerned that she looked “ill”.
Coleen had made it clear that she wanted to escape the courtroom as quickly as possible and, on the last day of the trial, she and Wayne fled the furore and jetted off to Dubai with their family.
But now Coleen has made it clear that she isn’t running away anymore. Instead, she has been quietly penning a new memoir, which will be released in time for Christmas.
And a source tells Closer that she won’t be holding back.
The insider says, “She feels a huge sense of relief after opening up and she feels that having her thoughts finally aired to the world was very cathartic. She wisely waited until the time was right so she could speak her truth clearly and calmly, rather than through emotion.
“But she says she’s not done yet – now she’s speaking out and that weight is lifting, she’s excited for the documentary to air and for her book release later this year to share more of her story with even more bombshells. She believes each step will help her heal even more after what was, let’s face it, a horrible year.
“In Coleen’s eyes, while she won the case, she didn’t feel she had proper closure. And now she’s speaking out, she’s satisfied that Becky is getting her comeuppance for the years of unnecessary pain, torment and heartache she’s caused not only Coleen but her entire family.”
Becky broke her silence on the interview when she cryptically shared a bikini selfie of herself captioned, “take a chill” before lashing out in the comments section.
In response to a social media user who mentioned Coleen’s Vogue interview, Becky wrote, “What I don’t get why you would want to keep bringing it up. It’s boring now! The public doesn’t care and neither do I. She won that’s the end of it! Be happy move on... because I know I have”.
And when a fan branded her “jealous” of Coleen, Becky posted, “Jealous of what exactly! Spare me the pain seriously... I wouldn’t put up with my husband sleeping with hookers end of! No excuses”.
But it looks certain there’ll be more revelations to come for Becky, as the past few months have also seen cameras following Coleen around as part of her new docu-series with Disney+ – a project that has reportedly earned Coleen millions. However, Coleen and the production team are still yet to come up with a title after Rebekah trademarked the term ‘Wagatha Christie’ in April – reportedly as a “two fingers up” to her nemesis.
Meanwhile, after years of trolls – and Becky – cruelly accusing her of being a “doormat” to husband Wayne for his own lies over his numerous cheating scandals (he later admitted he had “made a mistake”), Coleen said she’s proud of how far they’ve come as a couple and a family.
After remaining by her side throughout the trial, carrying her handbag while she walked in on her crutches while recovering from a broken foot, Wayne has been a huge support to Coleen.
And after Closer recently reported how the couple, who met at school, are stronger than ever, Coleen revealed that their hardships have only deepened their bond.
“There’s been doubts. ‘Is this going to work?’ I’ve been full of frustration and hurt. But another thing is we’ve never backed away from it. We own it,” she said.