Eamonn Holmes makes big decision on age gap girlfriend Katie Alexander after Ruth split

Eamonn Holmes and ex Ruth Holmes (Image: ITV)

GB News favourite Eamonn Holmes will front The Irish Post Awards in London next week, with the event celebrating the achievements of the Irish in the UK.

However, Eamonn is not expected to bring his new partner Katie Alexander, who is 22 years his junior. One insider said: "It's too soon for Eamonn and Katie to be walking red carpets together, so Katie will be skipping this one."

It comes after the couple made their relationship public in September by going on a luxury cruise. Eamonn announced his separation from Loose Woman Ruth Langsford earlier this year.

They had been married for 11 years and have a son together. In the summer, reports emerged that while marriage counsellor Katie was keen to announce their relationship, Eamonn, 64, had been taking a more cautious approach, aiming not to wound Ruth emotionally.

According to sources cited by MailOnline, "Katie wants the world to see they're a couple but Eamonn is keeping things low-key at the moment," with respect as his guiding principle. His relationship with Ruth was the longest romance of his life, with the couple spending almost three decades together, including 14 years of marriage.

Eamonn Holmes' new girlfriend Katie Alexander, a marriage counsellor (Image: KATIE ALEXANDER WEBSITE)

His decision that his new relationship isn't yet red carpet ready echoes a similar hesitation that he had when he first got together with Ruth.

Eamonn had wanted to show respect for first wife Gabrielle, with whom he shares three kids, by not going public with Ruth too hastily - especially as his divorce was not yet finalised at the time.

Ruth gushed in one interview about how gentlemanly she'd perceived his choice to be.

"I thought it spoke volumes about the sort of man he was, the sort of father he was and the integrity he had. It made me love him more, not less," she told Mail Online.

Eamonn Holmes with Ruth Langsford in the early days of their romance (Image: PA)

Eamonn and Katie recently enjoyed a cruise holiday together, beginning in Barcelona and heading to Toulon in Southern France, before edging towards the northern coast of Italy, near Rome.

Yet in spite of their trip, labelled a visit to The Irresistible Med and Rome, they are not yet ready to appear side by side at public events.

Eamonn recently hit back at trolls over his age-gap relationship, as his girlfriend is still in her early 40s, putting almost a quarter of century between them in age.

However, he's persevered, and liked a string of comments on social media recently which defended him against trolls bashing his love life.