Tess Daly and Vernon Kay’s relationship timeline – from ‘sexting’ scandal to warning signs of split

The former Strictly host and Radio 2 DJ – who have two daughters – admitted it had not been an “easy choice” to part ways.

“After much consideration, and with a deep sense of care and respect for one another, we have made the decision to separate amicably,” they said in a joint statement.

“This has not been an easy choice, but it comes from a place of mutual understanding and a shared desire of what is best for both of us.

“We remain great friends and, most importantly, fully committed to our roles as loving and supportive parents, which will always be our priority. There are no other parties involved in this decision.

And it hasn’t always been plain sailing in their romance, with Kay previously being embroiled in a sexting scandal that plagued the couple for years.

The pair met while working for rival channels in 2001, crossing paths at a BBC Christmas party.

“It was all quite immediate, really, because we instantly had such a blast together,” Daly told The Sun’s Fabulous magazine.

“I couldn’t imagine having more fun with anyone else. It was pretty explosive, I tell you.”

Kay recalled their outfits, telling Scott Mills on Radio 2: “Strictly Come Dancing’s Tess and I, recreated the video for Britney Spears’ Hit Me Baby One More Time. That’s how we first met.

“She was dressed as Geri Halliwell in the Spice Girls Union Jack dress; I was dressed as Britney Spears in the Hit Me Baby One More Time video school uniform. It was in a charity shop on Shepherd’s Green, Shepherd’s Bush Green.”

He claimed Mills helped the pair get together.

“I think you teed it up. I think you set it up as, ‘Why don’t you and our new presenter, Tess Daly, go and do this?’” Kay recounted.

Daly and Kay tied the knot after two years of dating, marrying on 12 September 2003.

They exchanged vows at St Mary’s Church in Kay’s hometown Horwich and held their reception at Rivington Hall Barn.

The couple travelled in a VW camper van, which had the words “Just Married” written on the back window.

The couple welcomed their first child, Phoebe, at a London hospital on October 17, 2004.

Daly recalled that after a long wait, holding Phoebe in her arms was “the most natural thing in the world”.

She admitted that Phoebe was not planned and that she wasn’t “the maternal type” until she became pregnant, at which point her priorities shifted entirely.

The presenter opened up about the difficulty of returning to work on Strictly Come Dancing for the show’s first series just six weeks after having a C-section.

She described this time as a “daunting” period of “burnout” where she was trying to manage being a new mum while filming.

Daly gave birth to their second child, Amber, on Saturday, 30 May 2009.

Speaking about how the couple like to raise them, Kay told Daily Mail: “We let them be independent when it comes to their futures because it’s important that you allow them to find themselves, which is character building and personality development.”

Kay was caught sending flirty messages back and forth with UK glamour model Rhian Sugden in 2010.

The Family Fortunes host made a public apology, saying: “Tess is extremely upset about this and we’re working through it.

“But in some ways, I’m glad this story has come out. It feels like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders.”

He later told The Sun he had been “stupid and daft” but he was “not a sex pest”.

The couple renewed their vows on their 10th wedding anniversary during a surprise weekend trip to their favourite hotel in the South of France.

Kay arranged for a Catholic priest, their parents, and their two daughters, Phoebe and Amber, to be there.

He coordinated with Tess’s stylist to have three white dresses delivered so she could choose one for the ceremony.

Kay famously kept the vow renewal a secret for almost a decade, before revealing the details during his 2020 stint on I’m A Celebrity.

He addressed a report in The Sun that said he and Sugden had reconnected before Christmas and had planned a hotel meet-up.

Kay said Daly was aware of his messages with Sugden and “there was never any inappropriate intent to our communication”.

He claimed he was seeking answers from the model over the pair’s previous contact in 2010.

Daly and Kay were last seen together publicly in February when they co-hosted The One Show.

Daly shared a photo of her and Kay smiling with Bridgerton stars Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha, as well as Oscar winner Jessie Buckley and Maggie Gyllenhaal.

“An evening at @bbctheoneshow with some incredible guests,” she captioned it.

Last month the couple were away together in the Caribbean with their daughter, Phoebe.

Despite not posing for photos together, Daly posted one of her eldest and Kay sat on a swing on the beach.

Kay posted a reel modelling Daly’s trunks from her swimwear brand Naia Beach.