It’s fair to say that Jacqueline Jossa and Dan Osborne have had more than a few highs and lows during their seven years together. But last week, things ramped up when it was revealed that Jac had moved out of their £1million marital home and taken the couple’s daughters Ella, five, and two-year-old Mia to stay with her parents, after lockdown had apparently highlighted the couple’s problems and Jac realised they needed time apart.
“They’ve taken the very difficult decision to take a break from one another. They also didn’t want the kids to see them bickering. They plan to reassess everything once the coronavirus madness is over,” a source said.
“There was no third party involved,” the insider told The Sun On Sunday. “Jacqueline simply needed to prioritise her mental health. By splitting short-term, she hopes to save their relationship long-term.”
Jacqueline confirmed the news and said she had been staying at a house her parents were due to move into in order to be away from Dan, but she denied they were getting a divorce. Meanwhile, Dan – who remained in the marital home with his son Teddy from a previous relationship – was pictured looking miserable while shopping.
However, just as we were digesting the news, they were pictured together with the kids, leaving Jac’s parents’ home. Speaking on her Instagram stories to promote her new pyjama range, Jacqueline confirmed she had moved back in with Dan, but would be splitting her time between the two properties, after it was claimed Dan had begged her to move back. Confused? Us, too.
“Not that it’s got anything to do with you, but I just want to let you guys know I am back at home,” Jacqueline told her followers, seeming slightly short-tempered. “I’m going to be going to and from, just because I’m going to be helping my mum and I’ve got some stuff going on. But I’m keeping busy… There’s loads of rooms [in the place her mum and dad will be moving into] and it’s basically just empty rooms at the moment, so I can have enough room to do my stuff.” Referring to her chaotic surroundings, she added, “This place is a mess, because I haven’t been here for a little while.”
Whatever the truth of the situation, we’re told things are far from good between the couple. Jacqueline, 27, has been struggling to trust Dan, 28, ever since she won I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! last year. While she was in the jungle, stories emerged that Dan had cheated on his wife by having a threesome with his Celebrity Big Brother co-stars Natalie Nunn and Chloe Ayling shortly after the birth of Mia. They had previously split while Jac was pregnant, amid claims Dan had got together with Love Island star Gabby Allen, but they reunited.
Check out: TOWIE stars then and now
heat TOWIE stars then and now stacked
1 of 20Lauren Goodger in 2011
Lauren Goodger takes on the red carpet at Essex Fashion Week back in 2011, a year after the show launched. Stripes and fake tan for days.
2 of 20THE GLOW UP - Lauren Goodger now
Oh YASS, the glow up is real.Check out Lauren Goodger in 2018. We don't know what magical moisturiser she is using but we are well jel - she looks younger. She briefly returned to TOWIE and has since launched her tanning brand LG Tan.
3 of 20Harry Derbidge in 2010
TOWIE's sweet heart and cousin to TOWIE royalty, Amy Childs, at the afterparty of a film premiere. Looking so young and fresh faced.
4 of 20THE GLOW UP - Harry Derbidge now
After quitting the show TWICE in 2014 (so, extra) he followed in his cousin Amy Childs' footsteps and opened his own boutique which later closed down. Now, he is a social media influencer and make-up artist and slaying the game. He has also announced his adoption plans with his fiancé Dean Rowland.
5 of 20Gemma Collins in 2011
Do you remember when she was a brunette? Yeah, no one does.
6 of 20THE GLOW UP - Gemma Collins now
"So, girls"She later ditched the bangs, the brunette hair and the excessive tan.After becoming TOWIE's most meme'ed star, she's launched her own TV show Diva Forever, dropped a podcast and she continues to be in an on/off relationship with James 'Arg' Argent.
7 of 20Amy Childs in 2010
Amy Childs in her signature red hair back in 2010 - on the red carpet for the launch of The Only Way Is Essex.
8 of 20THE GLOW UP - Amy Childs now
After being the first one to quit the show, she stormed the showbiz world with her own reality TV show, starred in Celebrity Big Brother and she is now reported to be worth over £5 million. She's also a mum to Polly and Rich.
9 of 20Mark Wright in 2011
Other than being an immediate TOWIE heartthrob / major palyer, he also used to model early on in his career.
10 of 20THE GLOW UP - Mark Wright now
Mark is now happily married to Michelle Keegan. He has his own radio show, he used to be the face of Take Me Out: The Gossip and he ventured across the pond to work with Mario Lopez on Extra.
11 of 20James 'Arg' Argent in 2011
This is what he looked like in 2011, a year after TOWIE launched.
12 of 20THE GLOW UP - James Argent now
Following his break-up from his on screen love, Lydia Bright, he took sometime off from TOWIE. He appeared on and off for a number of series but in 2020 he opened up about his cocaine addiction and eating disorder. He is now in an on/off relationship with Gemma Collins.
13 of 20Lydia Bright in 2011
Lydia opened her own boutique as soon as she joined TOWIE. She left the show after major drama with co-stars James Argent and Gemma Collins.
14 of 20THE GLOW UP - Lydia Bright now
Lydia's now mum to a little girl, Loretta.
15 of 20Sam Faiers in 2010
Quintessential Essex glamour is the best way to describe this picture but she definitely wins the best glow up...
16 of 20THE GLOW UP - Sam Faiers now
She 100% glowed up the most. Her life changed drastically since she first appeared on TOWIE. After leaving the show, she became a mother to Paul and Rosie. She followed Amy Childs' footsteps and joined Celebrity Big Brother and she has her own show The Mummy Diaries. You go girl.
17 of 20Kirk Norcross in 2010
He is a TOWIE original. He left the show three years after first appearing on our TV screens.
18 of 20THE GLOW UP - Kirk Norcross now
Not much has changed, except he is a dad to two children now.
19 of 20Maria Fowler in 2011
She had a very short time on TOWIE after she was dubbed "just a f***ing extra" by Kirk - harsh, right?
20 of 20THE GLOW UP - Maria Fowler now
We use the term 'now" very loosely with Maria, this picture is from early 2017 - that's because we can't find any recent pics as she is keeping it on the down low. We do know that is she is a makeup artist now, she's married to Kelvin Batey and they're expecting their second child later this year.
Although Dan denied the threesome story, he issued a statement, admitting he had done wrong, saying, “I want to publicly say I know I have made mistakes. I’ve made some that have almost cost me my family. I have seriously learned from these massively, so I want to publicly apologise to my beautiful wife and my family for the mistakes I’ve made.”
Dan and former EastEnders star Jacqueline got together while his ex, Megan Tomlin, was pregnant with Teddy. He also infamously sent Megan a string of abusive messages. Now, our insider says that being in lockdown brought back all Jac’s fears about Dan being unfaithful, especially as it was claimed he had been sending inappropriate messages to other women. “Jac had enough of all the cheating scandals. She couldn’t take it any more,” we’re told.
“It’s tough, because she believes in marriage and wants to stay together for the kids – but at the same time, she wonders how many more times she can handle stories like this happening. There’s no smoke without fire and Jac is furious with Dan for getting into a situation where women are saying he’s being flirty. Dan has made it clear that he’s done nothing wrong and that because of his work as a nutrition influencer on Instagram, he gets a lot of DMs from people enquiring about his business.”
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However, her friends and family are telling Jac to protect herself, with some urging her to consult lawyers. “People close to Jac are encouraging her to keep her wits about her and stop forgiving Dan every time something like this happens,” our insider says.
“They’ve urged her to have an exit plan in place and to protect her money, as they fear a split could get really messy. Jac is hoping it doesn’t get to that stage, but she’s really down about the fact they are facing these types of rumours again – she feels that there must be a reason why it keeps happening. Her friends have told her that, if Dan is going to keep getting himself into hot water, it wouldn’t hurt to speak to a divorce lawyer, just get herself prepared for the worst. Knowledge is power and they think Jac needs to take the control back in the marriage. Even if he’s denying it all the time, he has admitted to wrongdoing in the past, so who is to say it won’t happen again or it has happened again? Jac says she’s taking his word for it – right now, that’s all she’s got.”
When she left the jungle, Jac spoke about what Dan had put her through and how she was hoping to move on and make a fresh start. “It’s been two years of me basically giving him hell, and it’s not like he’s got away lightly at all,” she confessed. “He knows he’s done wrong, he knows he’s done a lot wrong.”
But now it seems that fresh start was harder to make than she first thought and they may be heading for a split after all...
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