Gavin and Stacey icon Ruth Jones and husband David Peet recently shocked fans after releasing a statement on their split, with it later revealed one of them is already in a new relationship

Ruth Jones' marriage from 'affair' beginnings to shock split after 26 years(Image: Getty Images)

TV icon Ruth Jones and estranged husband David Peet shocked fans when they recently released a statement on their split. The couple, who were married for 26 years, are now legally separated but "remain good friends" as they explained the reason behind their split in a statement shared to fans on Wednesday.

In a statement shared with the PA news agency, they said: "We amicably went our separate ways 18 months ago and are now legally separated. We remain good friends. Since our separation, Ruth is living in London and David is living in Canada, where he is in a new relationship."

Ruth and her husband went their separate ways(Image: imdb)

The couple's split came as a shock to many after almost three decades of marriage, with Ruth being stepmother to his three children, Louise, Alex and Fiona

They first met when they both worked at the radio division of BBC Wales - with love blossoming between the two after they heard each other speak.

She previously joked about how she met him, speaking to The Scotsman: "It was love at first voice because I spoke to [him] on the phone before I met him."

David was married when they first met(Image: BAFTA via Getty Images)

Sharing more details of her husband, who has since moved on with a new partner, Ruth told The Independent in 2008: "He has a very sharp mind combined with a dry Yorkshire wit, making him a naturally funny man."

They properly met each other while filming the pilot episode of a BBC comedy in the early 90s. However, David was married at the time and Ruth later confessed there was an overlap between David's split from his wife and when they started to date.

"Affairs cause a lot of pain; they’re not something one aspires to do," she explained. "You don’t aspire to cause pain to people in their life."

During their lengthy marriage, they resided in Cardiff and created the production company called Tidy Productions, which created hit sitcom Gavin & Stacey.

While Ruth was mainly private about her marriage, she once discussed her views on children and her happiness of being a stepmother to David's kids.

Ruth told the Daily Mail: "It just didn't happen. It wasn't a decision. I don't have a burning desire to have babies. I think it's heartbreaking if you do and you find out you can't have them. I love being a stepmum — all the joy of motherhood without the pain of childbirth."

And she told The Scotsman of the "joys of parenthood without giving birth" that she adores her role as a stepmum. She gushed: "You take things as they come.

Unfortunately, after over two decades together, the couple called time on their relationship. They released a statement this week revealing they "remain good friends".

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