Hairy Bikers star Si King reveals ‘pain and anguish’ of bitter divorce
The television chef has reflected on the breakdown of his 27-year marriage to Jane Dodd, his recovery from a life-threatening brain haemorrhage and finding happiness with a new partner following the death of his Hairy Bikers co-star Dave Myers.
Si King has spoken candidly about the breakdown of his 27-year marriage, admitting he caused his former wife Jane Dodd considerable “pain and anguish” during a divorce that left lasting emotional scars on their family.
The 59-year-old Hairy Bikers presenter, who separated from Jane several years before their divorce was finalised in 2016, reflected on the collapse of their relationship during an appearance on Davina McCall’s Begin Again podcast.
Si, who survived a life-threatening brain haemorrhage in 2014, said the separation had been far from amicable, although the former couple have since rebuilt their friendship.
Speaking to Davina, 58, Si said: “I look back at that man and I don’t recognise him. It was a world full of contrast.
“I was loved but I caused quite a lot of pain and anguish.”
The television chef said his recovery from the brain haemorrhage had prompted him to reconsider his behaviour and the impact of the marriage breakdown on those closest to him.
He said: “After the brain haemorrhage, it took me about three or four years to go ‘who in god’s name was that?’.
“I think before the operation, Jane – my then wife, we got divorced in the end.
“Nobody wants to bring that to your kids or your family and that kind of anxiety and frustration undermines all of those tenants of life that you set out to bring and security as well. It had a profound effect on my family.”
When Davina asked how the couple had managed to separate amicably, Si acknowledged the process had been difficult for both of them.
He added: “It wasn’t because it was so painful and I don’t think it was [amicable] for Jane either.
“We wanted to be amicable for our children and Jane was way more emotionally mature than I was going through that process.
“It just takes time, it’s important. A divorce is rather like a marriage, it’s about compromise and it’s about understanding where you went wrong and being an adult about it, it takes two to tango, it is never anybody’s fault, it just broke. I’ve continued to think about it a lot.”
Si also reflected on how his understanding of love and relationships had changed since the separation.
He said: “I’ve been incredibly lucky in my life where I’ve been loved.
“That love doesn’t break, it just becomes different. I was loved at that time by the person that I was and you have to treat that with enormous respect.
“I’ve been loved after that. Love just changes, it’s kind of shapeless, it’s about the person you are and what you’re giving off and all of those nuances about the time that you are and the existence that you have and the life that you have at that point.”
He added: “But you can’t dismiss it because it is a part of the journey and knowledge that shapes you as you go through to maturity and you have to treat it very gently and kindly and with respect.”
A decade after their divorce, Si said he and Jane had established a close friendship.
He said: “Thank goodness Jane and I are great mates, I adore her, she’s a fabulous woman.”
Si’s reflections come as he embarks on a new relationship with Staffordshire-based designer and property manager Caroline Witcomb, known to friends as Milly, who has reportedly been described as 62.
The couple recently appeared together in a photograph taken during a holiday in Italy, with Si crediting Caroline for supporting him through the grief of losing his close friend and television partner Dave Myers.
