MARK Labbett’s ex Hayley Palmer is ‘growing close’ with millionaire MAFS groom Ben Jardine after her shock split from The Chase star.
It was just a few months ago that Hayley, 43, revealed she was dating a mystery man – teasing fans with a snap from one of their dinners.
Mark Labbett’s ex Hayley Palmer is ‘growing close’ with Ben Jardine[/caption]
MAFS groom Ben is a millionaire property developer[/caption]
But, while the TV star refused to reveal his identity at the time, The Sun has since learned it’s reality favourite Ben, 42, she’s been spending time with.
A source told us: “Since her split from Mark, Hayley’s been slowly finding her confidence again and Ben’s been a huge support.
“They’ve known each other for a while but things started to take off after he went to her birthday party in July and they’ve been growing closer ever since.
“They’ve even landed a presenting gig at The Boat Show comedy club together, which has given them the chance to really enjoy each other’s company.
“Right now, they’re just having lots of fun and seeing where things go, but there’s definitely a spark.”
Property tycoon Ben appeared on Married At First Sight all the way back in 2017, where he tied the knot with Stephanie Saint Remy.
The couple were the only newlyweds to survive the show.
However, they split soon after the cameras stopped rolling and Ben went on to welcome a little boy with yoga teacher, Silvia Sanchis.
Earlier this year, Hayley opened up on her previous relationship, revealing Mark brutally dumped her in a three-minute phone call.
Hayley and Mark dated for a year and seemed loved-up before their shocking split just days after their one-year anniversary in May.
The 6ft 7in quizzer, nicknamed The Beast, said he was ending their year-long romance because he did not want to divorce his ex Katie.
Hayley admitted she “didn’t know what happened” as they had just celebrated their first anniversary on May 16. with a trip to the beach in Southsea, Hants.
They spent time on a bench which was the same place they shared their first date, followed by a meal at Beefeater.
So Hayley had the wind taken out of her when he called things off in a brutal phone call just days later.
Hayley told us: “The call started off as a normal conversation.
“He was spending time with his son and we’d had a conversation about me joining them at a water park.
“Then he said, ‘I don’t know how to tell you this, but you were right. I don’t want to divorce my ex-wife’.
“The shock of the way he said it was so brutally cold and not the Mark I know.
“I thought he was a gentle giant, so this was the complete opposite.
“He was as cold as ice.”
Later at the National Reality TV Awards, Hayley opened up on the toll the split had taken on her and how she was looking forward to the future.
They had even appeared on ITV’s Loose Women days earlier and spoken about their relationship — and their future together.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun, Hayley said: “I think you go through stages of a break-up and it was…
“It was really hard to begin with and I couldn’t even get out of bed.”
Choking back tears, she continued: “But then I went through a stage when I was okay, then I went through a stage where I was bursting into tears the other week but now I’m like, ‘Hayley, let’s go, come on you bad b***h.’”
Presenter Hayley dated The Chase’s Mark for a year[/caption]
She’s been teasing her new man on Instagram[/caption]
She shared this snap, seemingly from one of their dates[/caption]
