Inside Les Dennis’ bitter divorce from second wife Amanda Holden | Celebrity News | Show and television

Les Dennis and Amanda Holden’s marriage, once hailed as the ‘showbiz wedding of the year’, ended in a highly publicized and emotional split.

The pair met in 1993 while starring in The Sound of Music at Bournemouth’s Pavilion Theatre.

They seemed to be the perfect couple when they got married just two years later.

However, their relationship would later fall apart, leading to a very public divorce in 2002.

When they married in 1995, Amanda was just 22 years old. Meanwhile, Les, already an established TV presenter and star of Family Fortunes, was 40 years old.

Their age difference and their respective places in the entertainment world made their wedding a media spectacle.

Amanda dazzled in a stunning white dress and the pair appeared happily in love.

However, behind the scenes, cracks soon began to form.

The turning point in their marriage came when Amanda had an affair with actor Neil Morrissey while they were both working on the BBC drama Happy Birthday Shakespeare.

The cheating scandal hit the headlines and Amanda became the center of a media firestorm. She later told the Express what a shock to the system it was for her, having maintained a girly reputation all her life.

She shared: “I found the fall from grace incredibly hard to deal with. I can’t stand not liking it.

“I was a prefect at school. I never got a tattoo, got arrested or pierced my ears more than once. Then I had an affair and overnight I became this horrible person.”

Despite the infidelity, Les and Amanda attempted a reconciliation, briefly separating in hopes of repairing their relationship.

However, their efforts proved fruitless and by 2002 the marriage had broken down completely.

To the surprise of the public, when the couple filed for divorce in 2003, Les cited his own alleged infidelity in the proceedings.

This move helped speed up the process and the divorce was finalized that year.

In the years since their split, Amanda has spoken of the “brutal” moment when she realized they both had to move on.

She admitted in a 2003 interview that although she really wanted children, she didn’t want to have children with Les, which led to their separation.

Amanda later found happiness with music producer Chris Hughes, whom she married in 2008. Together they have two daughters, Lexi and Hollie.

As for Neil Morrissey, he publicly expressed his regret over the affair in a 2014 interview with Piers Morgan’s Life Stories, apologizing for the pain he caused Les.

In the years since the divorce, Les Dennis has moved on with her life and found happiness again.

In 2009 he married his third wife, Claire Nicholson, with whom he shares two children.

After reflecting on his past with Amanda, Les has stated that he holds no hard feelings.

Although the two are no longer in touch, he told the Sunday Times that watching his ex-wife on Britain’s Got Talent no longer stirs up old emotions.

Now, Les is now focusing on his family and career, which involved an exciting season on Strictly Come Dancing in 2023.