The Chase’s Mark Labbett SPLITS from wife Katie so she can date her lover after open marriage fails
‘It’s better for us to go our separate ways’: The Chase’s Mark Labbett, 55, SPLITS from wife Katie, 28, so she can date her lover after their open marriage failed to work
By Niomi Harris For Mailonline
Published: 17:58 EDT, 29 August 2020 | Updated: 22:17 EDT, 29 August 2020
The Chase star Mark Labbett has revealed he’s split from wife Katie so she can be free to date her lover, after their open marriage failed to work.
The quizzer, 55, broke up from his wife, 28, following seven years of marriage, listing lockdown, his mental health and their age differences as factors contributing to the split.
In a candid interview, Mark, known on the ITV quiz show as ‘The Beast’ admitted ‘It’s better for us to go our separate ways.’
All over: The Chase star Mark Labbett has revealed he’s split from wife Katie so she can be free to date her lover, after their open marriage failed to work
He told The Sun: ‘There was never any deceit on Katie’s part but it’s got to the point now where I realise it is better for us to go our separate ways and remain friendly.’
While Katie added: ‘I just want everyone to know what’s what and that we are all happy.’
It’s been revealed that Katie, who works as a nurse, has been seeing her senior design engineer lover Scott Bate, 30, for 18 months.
Mark, who shares a three-year-old son with Katie, admitted that he had a feeling that she was seeing Scott, but decided to approach things sensibly for the sake of their son.
Marriage breakdown: The quizzer, 55, broke up from his nurse wife, 28, following seven years of marriage, listing lockdown, his mental health and their age differences as factors contributing to the split
But when lockdown came, things between him and Katie became strained and she started seeing Scott, resulting in Mark making the decision to end their marriage for good.
He explained: ‘When Katie first came clean to me about her boyfriend, I’d had an inkling. But right from the start, my attitude was quite pragmatic — this was spilt milk, what could we do about the situation to make it OK?’
He added that because they had a ‘family’ he simply could just ‘throw that away lightly’ as they had other ‘considerations’.
The candid interview also saw Mark blame his hectic work schedule and being away from home a lot, as well as their age difference, as contributions towards the split.
Amicable: ‘There was never any deceit on Katie’s part but it’s got to the point now where I realise it is better for us to go our separate ways and remain friendly’ (pictured in 2016)
While Katie continues to see her boyfriend, Mark expressed ‘concerns’ that Scott was ‘good’ to his son after the youngster began mentioning Scott’s name.
Mark has said that Scott has met their son and he trusts him around their little boy. The quiz star added that he’s due to move out of their family home in Herefordshire next month.
Inkling: Mark, who shares a three-year-old son with Katie, admitted that he had a feeling that she was seeing Scott, but decided to approach things sensibly for the sake of their son
Mark and Katie tied the knot at Arundel Castle, West Sussex, in October 2014.
In September last year, Mark confirmed he was still with his wife, despite her admission four months earlier that she had cheated on him with a younger man.
During an appearance on Loose Women, the TV personality was asked about the status of his marriage, where he admitted they have been ‘through a rough patch.’
‘Like a lot of relationships, you go through a rough patch. We’re working our way through it,’ Mark told the Loose Women.
Split: ‘When Katie first came clean to me about her boyfriend, I’d had an inkling. But right from the start, my attitude was quite pragmatic — this was spilt milk, what could we do about the situation to make it OK?’
‘A newspaper offered us a sum of money and we kindly denied. We’re quite private, there’s no pictures of our son online and I’m not going to name him until he’s old enough to make the decision.’
Denise Welch wanted to confirm that the couple are still together to which Mark flashed his wedding ring.
Back in May 2019, Mark’s wife Katie confirmed the couple had separated, just weeks after the pair profusely denied claims of trouble in paradise with their age gap love.
In her candid chat with The Sun, she said: ‘Mark and I had been talking about separating for some time — we have been drifting for a while. He works away a lot and that’s been hard. A lot of people think it’s the age difference but we don’t see that as the factor.’
Tough time: In September last year, Mark confirmed he was still with his wife, despite her admission four months earlier that she had cheated on him with a younger man
She added that she had found happiness with a new man, Scott, explaining: ‘It’s more that we don’t have mutual friends, and our lives are just very different. I met Scott by accident, on a night out, and we just clicked. It wasn’t intentional, it just happened…
‘But Mark always knew — straight from the off I was honest. He knew I was going out and who I was seeing. He was incredibly understanding. If it was anybody else it wouldn’t matter, but because Mark’s in the limelight people have been gossiping…
Candid: During an appearance on Loose Women, the TV personality was asked about the status of his marriage, where he admitted they have been ‘through a rough patch’
‘We remain good friends and he is happy for me that I’ve met Scott — and I’d be fine if he met someone else. So I just want to set the record straight now as I’m sick of all the speculation. I want us all to be able to get on with our lives.’
In a twist in their love story, Mark and Katie are cousins – something they realised about each other three years after they wed in 2014.
Mark said in a previous appearance on Loose Women: ‘It wasn’t something we were aware of at the time – it was one of those things that happened.’
The couple were totally unaware that they were second cousins when they began dating. Katie’s dad and Mark’s father are first cousins, meaning the pair are second cousins.
Family: In a twist in their love story, Mark and Katie are cousins – something they realised about each other three years after they wed in 2014 (pictured in 2017)
