Helen Skelton's ex Richie Myler welcomes baby boy with Stephanie Thirkill seven months after divorce
Helen Skelton's ex-husband Richie Myler has become a father again with his partner Stephanie Thirkill.
The 34 year old rugby star, who shares three children with Helen, divorced the Strictly Come Dancing star seven months ago.
Stephanie and Richie, who is the director of rugby for Hull FC, welcomed their daughter, Olivia, last year and have now added to their family with the birth of son Freddie. Helen was married to Richie for eight years before she announced on Instagram that Richie had "left the family home" just four months after the birth of their youngest child Elsie.
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The former couple, who were renovating a house near their family home in Yorkshire before they split, are also parents to sons, Ernie, eight, and Louis, five.
Two years after the separation, Richie and Stephanie, who is the daughter of the owner of Leeds Rhinos rugby team where Richie used to play, have become parents again, reports the Mail. Stephanie, who is believed to have started dating Richie four months after his daughter with Helen was born, has updated her Instagram bio to include that she's the proud mother of children Olivia and Freddie.
She also includes Richie's name followed by a heart emoji and a dog, in tribute to the family's pet Ralph, reports the Mirror.
After announcing her split from Richie, Helen signed up for Strictly where she nearly clinched the Glitterball trophy with Gorka Marquez. In her autobiography, In My Stride, she revealed the emotional impact of learning that Richie had moved on with Stephanie: "I was in shock. I know that following break-ups, people often say they didn't see it coming and it sounds like a cliche, but that was me."
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Despite her heartbreak, Helen found solace in Strictly where she was well-received by both judges and audience. She praised the show for restoring her confidence, saying: "I think everybody at some point needs a little reminder of, 'Actually, you're really good at this, here's your invisible crown, pop it on. 'I was like, 'OK, I'm hurtling towards 40, I've just had another child. I'm on my own. I've moved my life; I've moved my house.'
"I was on a bit of a sticky wicket, but the dancers are all like, 'Oh my God, you have three children, that's incredible. You bought a house, that's incredible.'"
Before parting ways with Richie, the couple were renovating a house near their family home in Yorkshire. She shared how they managed parenting during this busy period and spending time apart: "No... We're not in the house together we are staying out of each other's way," she said.
"We say this is the dream as we have breakfast, lunch and dinner together but then look after the kids in shifts.
"You appreciate the other in this situation. I don't think he'll ever say again, 'What do you do with the kids all day? ' Sometimes he would get in from work and he'd be that husband that would look at the kitchen and say, 'How is this still a mess when she's been off all day? ' Now he's done it he's like, 'How does she stay sane? '".
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