Unlucky-in-love Vanessa Feltz has been spotted enjoying a cosy dinner date as her ex-partner moves on.
The radio DJ, 62, thought she had finally found her happily ever after when Ben Ofoedu popped the question back in 2006. But the TV personality found herself rebuilding her life once again after confirming her split from her fiancé in February 2023 after 16 years together.
This week, The Mirror revealed Ben is to wed his reality TV star girlfriend - after just a three-month romance. The 51-year-old, whose relationship with Vanessa collapsed over his alleged cheating, has been dating Precious Muir, 33, since December.
And at an event in London's Soho on Monday, he was heard introducing her to multiple fellow guests as: “My soon to be wife." Just a day after his marriage plans came to light, last night Vanessa put on a brave face as she was seen being wined and dined by Stefan-Pierre Tomlin, 33, who was previously found fame as 'Tinder's most fancied man."
The pair enjoyed an hours-long dinner in Sheesh - a restaurant in London's glitzy Mayfair. This isn't the first time that the TV presenter has been spotted with Tomlin, with the two photographed at a red carpet event only a couple of weeks ago. Here, the Mirror takes a look at Vanessa's heartache over the years...
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Ben Ofoedu and Vanessa Feltz have split after 16 years together (Getty Images for Orion Books)
It's not the first time the TV star has had to rebuild her life (Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)The news of Ben's plans to marry will heap further heartache on Vanessa, who has suffered two cruel ends to her long-term relationships. The pair, who met in 2005, had been engaged since 2006. But she dumped him last February after discovering at Christmas that he had been unfaithful.
The star previously revealed his reported betrayal left her "damaged and wounded." He later admitted to sleeping with an older woman three times in Ibiza, and flirting with another, in a mea culpa interview. And in October, This Morning agony aunt Vanessa admitted she had been so heartbroken that she didn’t eat for months after splitting from the former Phats & Small star.
She said, however, she refused to let her devastation destroy her life but knew it was back to square one after a very difficult time. Speaking weeks after she went public with her split, Vanessa said: "I’ve been through a horrible romantic breakup, and I’ve had almost everyone – I mean obviously my daughters, my family, my friends – reach out to me in this incredible wave of support. I’ve also heard from, I’m not joking, thousands of women who’ve sent me DMs to my Instagram, telling me their own stories, sending me support, bigging me up.
"So many women have shown this incredible empathy and love – and it makes a big difference, you don’t feel so alone. Literally, physically, I am alone – I’m in an empty house, it’s lonely. I don’t like being single, it’s not my thing and it doesn’t suit my personality at all – and that’s a scary prospect. But when your girls reach out from everywhere, and all the other ladies I don’t actually know yet but wish I did, it’s absolutely incredible."
The devasting split was not the first time she had to pick up the pieces. In 2022, Vanessa spoke of her hesitancy to tie the knot for a second time after her divorce left her "shaken to the core".
While Ben asked her to be his wife back in 2006, many wondered why they still hadn't got hitched more than 15 years on. But Vanessa admitted her divorce from her doctor ex-husband Michael Kurer 21 years ago made her "wary of getting married again."
Vanessa had her heart broken when her husband, Michael Kurer, divorced her in 2020 (Mike Lawn/REX/Shutterstock)
They never made it down the aisle - and her previous heartache may have played a part (Getty Images Europe)Speaking to OK! magazine, the TV presenter explained that while she would "never say never" to tying the knot, she hadn't made any firm plans for a wedding. Vanessa's split from the father of her children derailed her "to the most terrific extent" and left her "reluctant" to embark on a second marriage.
She married Michael in 1985 and the former couple welcomed daughters Allegra and Saskia into the world before their divorce in 2000. "I was so shocked and broken-hearted and rocked to my absolute core," the mum-of-two admitted.
"It makes you wary of getting married again. The marriage seemed to be so disposable - it could just be chucked down the toilet in 10 seconds flat, even though I didn’t want it to be and I didn’t realise there was any trouble with it or problems." Speaking on the How To Fail podcast, Vanessa explained how she felt as if she was physically broken after he left her and even revealed that she begged Michael to stay but he wouldn't change his mind.
She said: "I don't need to give you all of the details, but effectively I put my arms around the wheels and said, 'Please don't drive away, please don't leave us.' I remember getting home from a wedding with him and thought he was getting ready for bed.
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"The next thing I saw, he was getting dressed and packing a case and said, 'I'm leaving'. I didn't understand what I'd done wrong." As she approached her 61st birthday, she told fans about rebuilding her life, and wasn't going to let the heartbreak "defeat" her.
"Well I haven't been on Instagram for three weeks and that's because my relationship with Ben is over after sixteen years and I honestly didn't know what to say to you on Instagram," she told fans as she explained some of the details of their breakup in the aftermath of her heartbreak.
"But now it's clear that it's over and I really do feel that once the trust in a relationship is gone then you can't really get it back and that's what I would tell anyone else to do." Vanessa tried to hold back tears as she bravely continued: "And so I just wanted to say that obviously I feel incredibly sad and I am pretty disappointed and shocked and all those horrible things but also full of resolve. I am not going to let this defeat me.
"I am so glad to be living longer than my mum did, she died at 57 and for the Lord's prayers, I am going to be 61 next month. I am very very grateful to be alive and I want to carry on feeling that way and I want to celebrate and find fun and laughter anywhere I can.
"I know it is not going to be easy but I am absolutely determined to do it." Only a few months later, Vanessa showed just how resilient she is capable of being as she looked for love on the show Celebs Go Dating - which saw the presenter go on her very first date in nearly two decades.
Whilst she admitted that she found the prospect of her first date since her major heartbreak "terrifying", an expert previously explained to The Mirror that Vanessa quickly became a "dating pro". Anna Williamson explained, "She started very green at dating and now she's an absolute dating pro".
The expert added: "I hope people will be pleased to see her finish this series in a really positive place, perhaps a place that people wouldn't have assumed might happen if they'd been watching a couple of weeks ago. But Vanessa is a great example of someone who sticks with the process and we eventually get there in the end."
A version of this article was published in June 2023.
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