Ronnie O'Sullivan and his fiancée Laila Rouass have called it quits after a 13-year relationship. The EastEnders actress revealed the news of her split from the snooker icon in an emotional Instagram post on Thursday.
The pair, who once had plans to tie the knot, had lived together. Laila confessed to feeling "hurt, pain and anger", but also claimed she feels "so much better, stronger and sexier" now.
The 53-year-old wrote: "Break ups can strip you down to your essence. I got through mine by using pain as fuel to take control because no matter what, we will lose parts of ourselves in relationships. It's normal, don't beat yourself up."
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The former Footballers' Wives star went on to say that she's mindful of not "trying to get back to" her old self and instead wants to "discover" her true identity. She added: "I've gone through various emotions... hurt, pain, anger but what I've realised about anger is that it's bottomless. It can go on and on and once you're in that black hole... it's very hard to drag yourself back out.
"Anyone going through a break up.... I want to tell you that you will come out the other side. I have and I feel so much better, stronger and sexier. Life has a funny way of throwing in a plot twist here and there. I've even met an Arab Viking... like... how did that happen?”
She continued: "Just roll with the punches because life is so much richer, so much fuller when you drop the anger, the resentment and the regret. I'm looking back at my last relationship with a smile and wave, because time moves on and I don't like to play catch up."
The couple's romance began in 2011 when the actress was house hunting and stumbled upon Ronnie's mansion without knowing it belonged to him. It was Ronnie's father who showed her around the property and later informed his son about the visit.
Upon learning of Laila's interest in his mansion, O'Sullivan reached out to the estate agent, who happened to be a friend of the actress, to set up a date. In an unexpected twist, she was not even aware that he was a renowned sports figure.
She later confessed: "When she said he was a snooker player, I said, 'Yeah, but what does he do for a living?' I'd never heard of him because sport doesn't interest me at all, although Ronnie's won me over to snooker!"
After a mere four months, they were living together in Essex along with her daughter, Inez, from a previous marriage. O'Sullivan popped the question just over a year later in 2013, though they did not set a date for their wedding and never actually tied the knot.
"I'd have to really gear myself up for a wedding," she told The Sun in 2023. "At the moment we've put it on the back burner and we're enjoying our time. There's no rush."
Over the course of a decade, the couple experienced an on-and-off relationship, briefly separating in February 2022. At the time, Laila posted on social media: "After nearly ten years of love and memories, Ronnie and I have parted ways." However, they reunited several months later, with O'Sullivan claiming their relationship was stronger than ever.
"It's good," he said. "She's great. I love her. She's great company and I love being around her. She's very supportive. I have to behave myself. I know when to go, 'Alright, you're in charge'.
"But she’s also really good at going, 'Listen, you’ve got a busy life, you’ve got a lot to do, just get on with it'. Now it feels a lot better – everyone’s just in a better place. I just want to see her and her daughter happy, and her family, who are like my family, happy."
Laila echoed his sentiments, saying: "Ronnie's had a really calming effect on us and he tells me, 'Pick your battles'. He's taught me a lot about myself because he's more open and free than I am and very generous. I can't imagine him not being in my life."
However, more speculation about their relationship status arose when Laila appeared on This Morning in September this year without her engagement ring, fuelling rumours that their wedding plans had been cancelled.
Reported tensions between Laila and O'Sullivan's mother, Maria, who allegedly disapproved of her son's partner, may have put a strain on their relationship. In 2020, snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan's younger sister, Danielle, told The Sun: "Ronnie has given Mum so much help in the past. But when he asked her for £15,000 last year, he told me she said, 'I'm not giving you money for that f*****g s**g!’
“She has shown me Laila's number saved on her phone under 'the revolving f***y' and has apparently told Ronnie, 'She's just a prostitute - she'll sleep with anyone.'" O'Sullivan's mother has never publicly responded to these claims.
Maria, who served a one-year prison sentence for tax evasion in 1996, has largely avoided the limelight despite her son's sporting triumphs over the years. However, an anonymous member of Rouass' family once hinted that her feelings towards former Strictly Come Dancing star Laila had played a part in their relationship turning sour.
"Ronnie's mum's attitude in the relationship has not helped. She does not sound like a very nice person to me," the female relative told The Mail after their break up in 2022. "It's probably better that Laila and Ronnie didn't get married because who would want a mother-in-law like that?”
The same relative suggested "nothing major happened in the relationship" to trigger the split, as far as they knew. The couple rekindled their love soon after the break-up in 2022 but reports earlier this year claimed their conflicting schedules drove a wedge between them, with O'Sullivan having recently become an ambassador for snooker in Saudi Arabia.
Danielle also described her big brother as being "so in love with Laila" and hinted that their mother's behaviour could impact Ronnie's mental well-being. Laila has been recognised for helping Ronnie battle his personal demons over the years, while he struggled with depression and substance misuse.
In an Amazon Prime documentary last year, she confessed that witnessing his emotional turmoil was "soul-destroying". She was also present to support him when he received his OBE from King Charles in 2015. Before his relationship with Rouass, O'Sullivan had relationships with Sally Magnus and Jo Langley, both of whom he has children with.