Ruth Langsford's 'jealousy' over Eamonn Holmes before split laid bare by Coleen Nolan

Loose Women's Coleen Nolan admitted Ruth Langsford was "insanely jealous" just four months before her split from Eamonn Holmes was announced. In an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk back in February, ahead of her recent tour, the star was asked about the ongoing joke between the pair that The Nolans singer would steal Eamonn from Ruth.

"I love winding Ruth up about him. I love him - and me and him get on so well - and Ruth's like, 'seriously, my best friend, one of my best friends?' And I know that she's insanely jealous," she admitted.

"She gets really jealous so I love winding her up and going, 'Really, Eamonn is much better with me.' But then the papers pick it up, the magazines and stuff," she said. "We do have a laugh about it as soon as she says something about Eamonn - like if she's negative about him," she confessed.

Intimating that Ruth had been complaining about Eamonn's health issues, she continued: "She'll say he's always moaning with all these ailments I go, 'Eamonn’s not like that with me' and she's like, 'I swear to God I'm gonna kill you.'

"So we do have such a laugh about it," she confessed. "Love the two of them so much."

Eamonn has had a tough couple of years following the death of his beloved mother and his crippling health conditions. In October 2022, the GB News star's health deteriorated significantly after a fall at home during his recovery from an earlier back surgery. The tumble resulted in a broken shoulder.

The following year, he publicly recounted how Ruth had been with him during this distressing incident, which was triggered when his legs collapsed underneath him. "I was on a curve of the stairs, and I just went back down the stairs, boom, boom, boom down the whole staircase until I hit the stone floor in the hallway".

Describing the painful aftermath, he said: "Blood was pouring out my mouth, and a bone was sticking out my shoulder. Ruth came rushing down the stairs. She kept saying, 'You're fine, everything's okay, you're fine.' I said, 'Ruthie, there is a bone sticking out of my shoulder - I'm not fine'."

Their ordeal did not stop there as they had to wait four hours for an ambulance to arrive once Ruth made the call. Recounting the agonising wait, Eamonn explained: "Ruthie put a pillow under my head and sat with me in the hall and we tried to sleep."

For her part Ruth opened up about getting used to being his carer as well as his wife. "Being a carer is not always easy, but when someone you love needs help, you step up," she shared with a magazine.

At the beginning of the year, she expressed a wish that his health would improve, saying: "For 2024, I obviously hope for Eamonn that his back improves, he's not in pain and can move around more."

Ruth has also faced her own challenges, including the tragic death of her sister Julia, who took her own life in 2019. She now cares for her elderly mother, who suffers from Alzheimer's and resides in a care home near Ruth's residence.

The TV golden couple confirmed they were divorcing after 14 years of marriage and almost 30 years together on Saturday (May 25) releasing the following joint statement: "Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes have confirmed their marriage is over and they are in the process of divorcing."