TV presenter Ruth Langsford has been widely praised for her quiet dignity as she watches her ex-husband Eamonn Holmes date a much younger woman.
But when the opportunity for some naughty revenge arose, pals say the Loose Women star simply couldn’t resist.
After all, Ms Langsford, 64, has had to endure images of Mr Holmes’s new girlfriend Katie Alexander (22 years his junior) arriving at his new bachelor pad in Kingston, south-west London.
So when wheelchair-bound Mr Holmes, 64, asked his wife of 14 years (and partner of 26) if he could return to their £3.5m marital home in Weybridge, Surrey, to pick up some holiday clothes to go on a free cruise with Ms Alexander, Ms Langsford saw her chance.
She brazenly removed the £2,000 stair lift that was installed in the house to help Mr Holmes, who suffers from a debilitating back condition, climb the curved staircase to his former bedroom.
Mrs. Langsford was present for the visit, but she knew that when he arrived he would have difficulty getting up the stairs to get what he needed for the seven-night trip through Europe.
Loose Women’s Ruth Langsford has brazenly removed the £2,000 stair lift installed in her home so that Eamonn Holmes, who suffers from a debilitating back condition, could not climb the curved staircase to his former bedroom to fetch his clothes.
One said: ‘Ruth has kept quiet and graceful. Even when people mention what Eamonn has been doing, she keeps quiet and just smiles. She thinks it’s the best way. She’s had a lot of support from her friends.
‘But one thing she saw every day was the stair lift that Eamonn had installed. Ruth doesn’t need it. She’s fit and very healthy, but she knew that Eamonn would probably struggle when he had to go to the house to get some things he needed for the holiday. The bedrooms are upstairs and she needed to get to them.
‘It may seem petty, but Ruth’s friends think it’s absolutely hilarious as they think he’s actually cheated on her. You can imagine how furious Eamonn was. He was probably hoping to be able to use the stair lift to collect his things and quickly get out again and pack for his holiday.
“It was humiliating for her to see Eamonn and Katie together, and that was before the embarrassing photos they took while on holiday. She must be thrilled she did it after seeing those photos.”
Mr Holmes, 64, has been on holiday in Ibiza, Spain, with his much younger new girlfriend Katie Alexander, 42.
Mr Holmes had the stair lift installed in January 2023 so he could get to bed because he suffered from chronic back pain caused by herniated discs and a dislocated pelvis. He had undergone surgery four months earlier but still needed help at home.
Shortly after, family friend and TV presenter Rylan Clark visited the now-estranged couple’s home and posted a video of himself walking up the stairs.
Following Langsford’s revenge, Holmes and Alexander were photographed in Barcelona, where they boarded a Virgin cruise ship, The Scarlet Lady, to tour the Mediterranean. They were seen stopping off in Ibiza.
Shortly after the device was installed last year, family friend and TV presenter Rylan Clark visited the now-estranged couple’s home and posted a video of himself climbing the stairs.
The Mail revealed the luxury getaway involved a free holiday as part of her deal with Not Just Travel. In return, she filmed video content for their social media platforms.
Mr Holmes and Ms Alexander first exchanged messages on Twitter, now X, in 2015. It is unclear when the friendship began to develop, but reports suggest Ms Langsford discovered that in the year leading up to their split, Mr Holmes had been showering Ms Alexander with gifts.
Ms Langsford has not spoken about the end of her marriage on Loose Women. A friend says: “Ruth is just getting on with her life. It’s a case of actions speaking louder than words.”
Ms Langsford declined to comment, but sources close to her confirmed she had dismantled the stair lift.