Davina McCall's love life from 'traumatic' divorce to sexless marriage comments

Davina McCall recently announced that she was engaged to celebrity hair stylist Michael Douglas. The pair have been together since 2018, having known each other for years before then.

Michael cared for Davina, 57, as she recovered from major surgery last year. That came after medics discovered a benign brian tumour during a health check-up as part of her menopause advocacy work.

The celebrity hairstylist will be Davina’s third husband. The former Big Brother presenter has been open about the highs and lows of her love life across the years.

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Here we take a look at the Stranded on Honeymoon Island presenter’s dating history.

Davina’s ‘traumatic divorce’ from Matthew Robertson

Davina said she felt like she was in “emotional turmoil” after her 17-year marriage to Matthew Robertson broke down. The pair share children Holly, Tilly and Chester together.

Speaking to You Magazine in 2020, Davina said: “Going through a divorce is a traumatic experience and it is something that needs to be navigated as carefully as possible.”

“Two years on, we have both grown as people and we can now co-parent happily and acknowledge that it was the right thing for us to go through even though it involved absolute emotional turmoil.”

Davina had previously said the former couple stayed together “for the sake of their kids”. Davia admits the couple “never argued” but also concedes they “never spoke”.

“In the end, we were living completely separate lives. We were hardly talking. It wasn't arguing. We never argued. We just lived separate lives. And we weren't happy," Davina told The Times.

She added: “'I thought, '’I just want to be happy, and this is really sad. We're in a marriage and we're in it for the kids. We love our kids, but we're just not happy.’''

Relationship with Eric Clapton

Davina is said to have met iconic guitarist Eric Clapton when she was working in a restaurant. At the time Davina was in the throes of a heroin addiction, admitting she was a mess.

“You name it, I took it. Cocaine, ecstasy and heroin. Because of my mistakes I am less judgmental of others," she told The Mirror.

However, it was Eric, 23 years her senior, who convinced Davina to overcome her addiction. The Layla songwriter convinced Davina to head to Narcotics Anonymous.

She was, with the support of Eric, able to get clean and pivoted towards a healthier lifestyle. She has since fronted campaigns about women’s health and released 14 fitness DVDs.

Davina’s comments about a sexless marriage

Davina recently admitted that she feels a marriage doesn’t need sex to have intimacy. Speaking to Good Housekeeping, Davina explained couples can still spend time together naked without sex.

She said: “As long as both people want a sexless relationship. The problem is, is if you want a sexless relationship and the other person doesn't, then the other person is being asked to sacrifice something that they will miss and then potentially go and look for somewhere else. That won't work in the end.”

She added: “You can have beautiful intimacy together without the act of sex itself. You can hug naked and both know that it's not going to lead to sex. I think sometimes people don't want to be touched or hugged naked because they think, 'Oh, then they're going to want to have sex with me.' That's when you're not in the same place.”

New engagement to Michael Douglas

Davina and Michael, 49, reportedly got engaged before heading to the Burning Man festival in Nevada three weeks ago. It comes just days after Michael told The Mirror that plans for marriage were in the near future.

At the National Television Awards, he said: "There could be wedding bells on the way, who knows, I’m not going anywhere else if that’s why you mean. But we’re in no rush for any of that, we just enjoy each others company."

Davina and Michael first met when he began working on her hair while she hosted Big Brother. They found love decades later and went public with their relationship in 2019.

Davina will return to screens with Stranded on Honeymoon Island from 9pm on BBC One. The series hopeful singletons are placed on an island before being matched up and married.