She’d been posting pictures of herself on holiday, looking happy and healthy with her son Rafferty in recent weeks but Martine McCutcheon left fans and followers completely stunned last week when she announced that her husband of 12 years Jack McManus had called time on their marriage.
Martine, 48, posted the shock statement on her Instagram story, writing, "After much thought and consideration, Jack has decided it’s best for us to separate after 18 years together and I accept his decision.
"We are both so very blessed and grateful for our beautiful nine-year-old son Rafferty, whose happiness and welfare has always been, and will continue to be our number one priority.
"Whilst this decision has evolved over a period of time, we are still finding our new way forward as a family… I continue to send Jack all the love, luck and happiness for the next chapter of his life. Rafferty and I (as always) are rooting for you!"
The bombshell came just over two weeks after the Love Actually actress had posted a gushing tribute to her husband on Instagram on his 40th birthday, where she wrote that she’d ‘love [him] unconditionally’.
Martine – who rose to fame as barmaid Tiffany in EastEnders in the 1990s – met singer Jack, 40, back in 2007, with the pair tying the knot in an idyllic Lake Como wedding five years later.
They welcomed Rafferty in 2015, with Martine saying of motherhood, "A massive part of me knew I was meant to be a mum and that it would make me so happy. It felt like one of life’s purposes and when it happened it made me feel complete."
But despite thriving in parenthood, Martine – who has also battled health struggles, being diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and Lyme disease in recent years – has hinted at marriage troubles over the years.
She revealed in an interview how some of her friends had helped her push through a rocky patch with Jack, saying on Loose Women in 2016, "They’ve been like 'calm down, you really love him, you two are meant to be together, stick at it'. Nowadays more than ever people just chuck in the towel – everything’s so disposable now."
The couple renewed their vows in 2022 – and she said at the time that they hadn’t always had the ‘perfect’ marriage, but had always got through it, saying, "We’ve had our ups and downs, like everybody. We’ve had our challenges, but I think ultimately we’re each other’s best friend."
And while the reason for their split remains unclear, it seems that Jack had been struggling in recent months following the death of his father Mick, with Martine writing an emotional post to him in which she said, "One step at a time darling. You, like your dad, have touched so many hearts with your love and kindness. You make life better for so many."
Prior to her relationship with Jack, Martine had had a turbulent love life, having a failed engagement before dating an array of famous faces.
She got engaged to DJ Gareth Cooke in 1996, before calling off the engagement six months later, with Gareth reportedly going on to sell salacious stories of their sex life.
She then dated footballer Frank Lampard, actor Steve John Shepherd and Blue singer Duncan James, and was even rumoured to have had a fling with Hugh Grant after the pair played love interests in Love Actually.
Speaking in an interview in 2005, she revealed she was and always would be a hopeless romantic and wouldn’t give up on love, saying, "I’m not even 30 and yet I feel more has happened to me than some people experience in a lifetime. Despite that, I’m pretty sure that Mr Right hasn’t passed me by."
