Boyzone’s Ronan Keating and wife Yvonne end 14-year marriage

01/04/2012 § Leave a Comment

Ronan Keating and wife Yvonne have ended their 14-year marriage, it was claimed today. The Boyzone star, 35, failed to get his relationship back on track after his extramarital affair with Francine Cornell was revealed in 2010. Yvonne, 37, had tried for the last two-and-a-half years to work through her husband’s infidelity, but the strain proved too much for the pair. According to reports the couple had mainly tried to save their marriage for their children but their efforts were in vain.

A representative for Mr Keating said: ‘There is no comment on this.’ A close friend told The Sun newspaper: ‘Although Ronan and Yvonne couldn’t patch things up, they are both determined to be there for their kids. ‘They still love each other and wanted to tell their children and then their friends first, before everyone found out.’ Ronan’s affair with dancer Francine Cornell happened began during a tour and continued for around seven months. Yvonne discovered her husband had a secret second phone and decided to go through the messages. There she found intimate correspondence between the father-of-three and the then 26-year-old Cornell. Yvonne reportedly rang Francine after she found the texts, only to be told by the dancer ‘We’re in love’. Heartbroken Yvonne then confronted Ronan who admitted the affair.

A source said at the time: ‘There were some quite suggestive texts that left little to the imagination. Yvonne went ballistic and told him it was over there and then.’ According to sources, Ronan and Cornell’s blossoming friendship was the ‘talk of the tour’. The pair met on Boyzone’s tour in May and June 2009. ‘Ronan and the girl were certainly very close,’ one source said.

And while the singer’s infidelity shocked fans, one former colleague said the singer is simply getting an overdue ‘comeuppance’.

‘Throughout his career he has always cast himself in an angelic light. But the truth has been far murkier,’ they said.’As far as Ronan’s concerned the only person that matters is Ronan. ‘This is the first time he has been caught out with another woman but there has been talk about his private life for years. Women have always thrown themselves at him.’ They added: ‘Now you have to wonder whether he always resisted their charms.’

After begging for forgiveness, Ronan was let back into the family home with his children Jack, 13, Missy, 11 and Ali, 6. However, with his work commitments on Australian Idol, it was difficult for the relationship to survive.