Martin Clunes' ex-wife has spoken about the moment they both realised their marriage was over following a heated argument in the middle of a restaurant.
The Men Behaving Badly and Doc Martin star married Lucy Aston in 1990, but their relationship came to an abrupt end just three years later after a particularly scathing remark during a dramatic confrontation. The couple initially enjoyed a blissful first year of marriage, but tensions grew as Martin's career took off while Lucy continued working in a health food shop.
When they first met, they were both "party animals", but as she started focusing on training to become a crisis counsellor, tensions reportedly rose between the pair. According to Lucy, Martin called her "dull and boring" as she swapped their nights out for studying.
The breaking point came when he attended a party alone, later claiming he had "forgotten" to invite her. The following evening, an argument erupted at their favourite Chinese restaurant, with Martin allegedly telling his former wife: "You are an embarrassment."
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Daily Mirror)After the outburst, Lucy finally accepted there was no going back and that their marriage was over after three short years. In April 1997, she told The Mirror: "He told me I was boring and different and I just thought: 'No more.' I stood up and said 'thanks for dinner - this is the end' and stormed out. I sat in the car shaking with rage.
"Later I went back and Martin was sitting there, surrounded by take- away cartons filled with our meal. He just looked at me. I took off my gold wedding ring, slammed it on the table and walked out.
"We both knew it was over. I was furious when I found out he had gone to a party without telling me. Worse than that, he had said he was going out with just a couple of male actor friends. He tried to make out he had told me, but the truth is he just didn't want me there. The sad thing is I had become an embarrassment to him."
Lucy went out for a drive on her own and when she came back to their North London flat, she realised there was no salvaging the relationship. They discussed their future, agreeing it was best to part but vowing to stay friends. "We just looked at each other and said 'Bye, then'," explained Lucy.
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Getty)After the split, Lucy went to America for 10 weeks and by the time she returned Martin was dating his now wife TV producer Philippa Braithwaite. "It was a bombshell when he told me he was with Philippa," said Lucy.
Martin and Lucy divorced in 1997 and he married Philippa later that year while Lucy was pregnant and in a new relationship. At the time, Martin gave his own explanation of why the marriage failed, stating: "We had a problem enjoying each other but now I can enjoy Lucy again. We are friends and can appreciate each other."
However, in September 2008 he stated their marriage was "rotten" in a scathing interview in the Mail's Weekend magazine. He said: "I don't know if I was searching for anything. Maybe I was. I kind of found it without looking. When I met Philippa I was coming out of a rotten marriage, and was very resistant to the idea of getting involved again."
This did not go down well with Lucy, who hit back by telling the Mail: "I want Martin to stop telling everyone what a failure it was and what an awful time he had. In truth, I was the one who had a terrible time. I'll always love Martin, but he needs to take responsibility for the collapse of our marriage instead of constantly dismissing it so scathingly in public."
Martin and Philippa tied the knot in 1997 with a small ceremony and an afterparty at The Savoy hotel in London. They went on to have daughter Emily in 1998 and have now left London for a quieter life on their farm in Dorset.
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