In a candid revelation, comedian Les Dennis has shared the pivotal moment when he realized his marriage to Britain’s Got Talent star Amanda Holden was never meant to last. The moment, which involved a simple comment from a plumber, has left fans shaking their heads at how an innocent remark could have foreshadowed the couple’s eventual split.
The story behind their relationship started back in 1993, when Holden, at just 22, and Dennis, 40, first met during a production of The Sound of Music at Bournemouth’s Pavilion Theatre. Despite the age gap, the two hit it off, and just two years later, they were married in a lavish ceremony in 1995.
However, their fairytale romance quickly hit a roadblock, and by 2000, Holden’s affair with actor Neil Morrissey became public, exposing a rift that neither could mend. Holden later admitted that the affair had been “incredibly hard to deal with,” confessing, “I can’t bear not to be liked. Then I had an affair and overnight turned into this awful person.” Morrissey later expressed regret, apologizing for the pain caused, especially to Dennis, who seemed devastated by the situation.
But despite the scandal, Dennis and Holden briefly patched things up. It wasn’t until 2002, however, that the couple finally called it quits, with their divorce finalized a year later. Holden went on to marry Chris Hughes in 2008, and they share two children, while Dennis remarried Claire Nicholson in 2009.
Years later, Dennis reflected on the moment he should have known his marriage to Holden was doomed. The reveal comes with a dose of humor, as he recounted a seemingly innocent exchange with a plumber while at their Highgate home.
Dennis recalls, “It was Grand National Day, and the plumber was there fixing the washing machine. Amanda came running in, asking me to put a bet on. I gave her £10, and she insisted on £20. The plumber, watching this, commented, ‘Kids, eh?’ Maybe I should’ve known then.”
Dennis says the comment stuck with him, signaling the cracks in their relationship long before their eventual split.
Holden, however, has no ill will toward her former husband, despite the turmoil that surrounded their marriage. “I wish him the best, but we’ve both moved on,” she said. “I don’t believe women have affairs for no reason. Women don’t seek sex – we seek love and affirmation.”
In her own words, Holden confessed, “I terribly want children but I didn’t want to have them with Les. That’s a brutally honest thing to say, but when you know, you know, and you have to move on.”
Perhaps, if Dennis had listened to the plumber’s seemingly innocuous words back then, the heartache and years of turmoil might have been avoided. But life moves on, and both Holden and Dennis have since moved forward with their lives.
It’s a powerful reminder that sometimes the smallest moments can speak volumes about where things are headed.
