Laila Rouass previously spoke out about her ‘soul-destroying’ struggles with fiancé Ronnie O’Sullivan, months before the pair reportedly split after 12 years together.
It was reported on Thursday that the couple had ended their engagement, after the Footballer’s Wives star, 53, was spotted without her ring during an appearance on This Morning last month.
Now, a clip from Ronnie’s Prime Video documentary The Edge Of Everything has resurfaced, showing the pair during a terse exchange as Ronnie, 48, talks about his struggle with his “demons”.
In the documentary, which was released in November, Laila sat down with Ronnie after his 6-4 loss to Neil Robertson at the 2022 Masters.
She said, ‘I want you to do what makes you happy. I’m not telling you to stop or move on. I would never put you in a situation like that.
Laila Rouass previously spoke out about her “soul-destroying” struggles with fiancé Ronnie O’Sullivan, months before the pair reportedly split after 12 years together.
It was reported on Thursday that the couple had ended their engagement, after the Footballer’s Wives star was spotted without her ring last month (pictured November 2023).
“I don’t have a problem with that. I think it’s just a management thing. There’s a lot of self-criticism involved and a lot of time to think on your own.”
But Ronnie stepped in and said, “But I think I’m a lot more comfortable with this now than I ever was.”
“If I didn’t stop before, when I was really uncomfortable, why would I stop now, when I feel more comfortable? It’s like I’ve overcome my demons in some way.”
Laila then added: ‘I think that’s your mood today. When you see it in a romantic way. But the reality is that it’s hard to see someone go through that emotionally.
“That’s when the questions arise: ‘My God, why is he doing this? Why is he subjecting himself to this?'”
“It’s like it’s soul-crushing, but I think you love it, no matter how much you hate to admit it.”
This comes after sources close to the pair said work had driven a wedge between Laila and Ronnie this year, with the snooker star making major trips abroad to take part in competitions while the actress focused on her film career.
A friend told me The sun:“They’ve been going in different directions.”
Now, a clip from Ronnie’s documentary on Prime Video has resurfaced, showing the pair during a terse exchange as Ronnie, 48, talks about his struggle with his “demons”.
Laila told Ronnie: “I think that’s your mood today. When you see it in a romantic way. But the reality is that it’s hard to see someone go through that emotionally.”
The couple briefly split for eight months after a decade together but are back together again; people close to the relationship hope this current breakup “could be a bump like 2022.”
“Ronnie and Laila have really thrown themselves back into their relationship after splitting a couple of years ago,” they added.
‘He kept posting pictures of them together at home online and saying romantic things on special occasions, but that all stopped.
“They’ve tried so hard, but they just can’t make it work. There’s a lot of love between them, but they’ve gone in different directions and have accepted that it’s over.”
The actress, who has starred in Holby City, Footballer’s Wives and EastEnders, was spotted without her engagement ring during an appearance on This Morning.
She has been wearing the ring since 2013, when O’Sullivan gave it to her a year after they started dating.
Their relationship blossomed in 2011 after Ronnie called Laila to see his house, which had recently been put up for sale, and was given a tour by his father, Ronnie O’Sullivan Sr.
“It happened by accident,” she previously said. “Ronnie’s father showed me the house and told his son that he had met me. Ronnie called the real estate agent, a friend of mine, and asked me out through her.
“When he said he was a snooker player, I said, ‘Yeah, but what do you do? ‘ I’d never heard of him because I’m not interested in the sport at all, although Ronnie got me into snooker.”
It was then that their whirlwind romance began and they got engaged the following year.
In 2019, Laila told the Mirror of her lengthy engagement: “I’d have to prepare a lot for a wedding. At the moment, we’ve put it on the back burner and are enjoying our time, so there’s no rush.”
But the couple split after a decade together and Laila made the announcement to shocked fans.
This comes after sources close to the pair said work had driven a wedge between Laila and Ronnie this year, with the snooker star making significant trips abroad to take part in competitions (pictured in 2016).
“After almost ten years of love and memories, Ronnie and I have parted ways,” she wrote on Instagram in February 2022. “Peace and love to you all. Laila X.”
However, the separation did not last long and in April Laila was seen wearing her engagement ring again.
In May, after a month full of rumors and speculation, the couple confirmed their reconciliation, before leaving for vacation.
The actress said last year that open communication brought them back together after their split.
“We found a way to get back together, we just worked it out. When I announced it, we hadn’t been together for almost eight months at that point.
“Talking is so underrated. If you can sit down and say how you feel and what you want when you’re older, that’s a lot easier to say, too.”
Meanwhile, O’Sullivan admitted after his defeat to China’s He Guoqiang on Tuesday that the end of his snooker career was drawing near.
“I don’t have much time left, I’m not going to deny it, I’m not playing well enough, there’s no point even worrying about it, I’ve just accepted it and it’s a pretty nice situation to be in really,” he said.
“I feel terrible, it’s embarrassing. I miss a lot of balls. I can’t escape it, poor thing, but I can’t do anything about it,” he added.
‘I’ve been missing balls for the last four or five years and every now and then I’ll miss a few less, maybe, and get a couple of results.
“I don’t even care, I’m just here to fulfill my commitments to my sponsors, get away from home, travel.”