‘I wasn’t very respectful’: Ben Foden admits it was ‘wrong’ to marry wife Jackie on the morning his divorce from ex-wife Una Healy was granted
Ben Foden has admitted it was ‘wrong’ to marry his wife Jackie Belanoff Smith on the day his divorce from ex-wife Una Healy was granted.
The rugby ace, 35, married Una in June 2012 after four years of dating, but their marriage ended in 2018 after he reportedly cheated on her with PR girl Becky Milne.
Just one year later, Ben created shockwaves when he married his second wife Jackie on board a luxury yacht in Nantucket, Massachusetts, just two weeks after they started dating.
Wasn’t to be: Ben Foden, pictured with ex-wife Una Healey, has admitted in an Instagram Live video that his actions towards Una were ‘wrong’
The US socialite announced her pregnancy soon after, and the couple welcomed their daughter Farrah Abra Foden in May this year, born three weeks early following health complications.
Speaking in a candid interview with TV presenter Sharon Carpenter on Instagram Live last week, Ben admitted he did not act in a particularly kind way towards Una.
‘I hold my hands up and say, it was wrong,’ he said. ‘My final decree didn’t even come through until the morning of us getting married.’
The former England rugby player nonetheless maintained he had no regrets.
Whirlwind romance: Ben married American Jackie Belanoff Smith after just two weeks of dating on the morning that his divorce came through
Amicable: Despite the split, Ben co-parents Aoife, eight, and Tadhg, five, whom he had with Una
‘People will say I wasn’t very respectful in what I did, getting married to Jackie very quickly, but you can’t help the heart and we’ve got past it.’
The couple now live in America, where they are raising their four-month-old daughter Farrah.
Ben also co-parents a daughter Aoife, eight, and son Tadhg, five, whom he had with Una.
Ben also described the period after he split from Una in his interview with Sharon Carpenter.
True love: Upon meeting Jackie, Ben said ‘she was like no one I’ve ever met before’
He said: ‘I did a lot of dating. I went a bit crazy for about six-seven months, on a few of the well known apps. I had a lot of fun.
‘When I met Jackie, she was like no one I’ve ever met before in so many departments. She’s very independent, very free-spirited.
‘She was at a point where she was like, ‘I want to meet someone and get married and have kids’. Even though in my head I was like, ‘Oh I don’t really want to do that’ I knew she’d make such a good mum.
‘I knew she’d be really kind and respectful to my other kids from my other marriage.’
Content: After having a ‘crazy’ period following his split from Una, Ben says he is now happy