Married At First Sight star Ben Jardine announced his marriage was over during an interview with FUBAR Radio in March, much to the shock of his wife Stephanie.
But amid the bitter split, the estranged couple are finally moving ahead with their divorce, as they visited a solicitor’s office on Monday to start proceedings.
Ben and Stephanie, who met and married on Channel 4’s extreme matchmaking show earlier this year, were both pictured beaming with delight as they moved the legalities of their split along.
Moving on: Married At First Sight star Ben Jardine began divorce proceedings from his estranged wife Stephanie on Monday, arriving at a solicitor’s office
Both Ben and Steph dressed up for the meeting, with the millionaire property developer choosing a smart three piece suit.
Police office Stephanie meanwhile dazzled in a mint green high waisted skirt and chic black lace jacket.
The gorgeous brunette was joined by two friends for support, but looked in great spirits as she laughed with her pals outside the office.

It’s over! Police officer Steph looked in great spirits as she arrived for the meeting with the support of two friends. The couple won’t be able to officially divorce until January 2019
Ben meanwhile appeared to joke about the meeting, sharing a selfie of himself in the suit alongside the hashtag #toughdayattheoffice.
While they have kicked off proceedings, the couple will have to wait until January 2019 to officially divorce, with Ben explaining to The Sun he hadn’t considered the timeline when he announced the split.
‘We were both 110 per cent in it to make it work. I never got into this to get divorced so didn’t ever consider that we’d be have to stay together for a year if it didn’t work,’ he insists.

Wedding bells: Ben and Stephanie met for the first time at the altar on Channel 4’s extreme matchmaking show earlier this year but Ben announced their split in March
‘Now I just want closure. That’s why I revealed we’d split, I was sick of lying and everyone burying their heads in the sand thinking we’d sort it out.’
Ben previously accused his estranged wife of holding up their divorce proceedings and not giving him the closure he needs to move on from their relationship.
Speaking to The Sun Online in March, the 36-year-old property millionaire claimed his police officer ex wasn’t impressed that he announced their TV marriage was over during an interview with FUBAR Radio.

Break up: Ben appeared to joke about the solicitor’s meeting, sharing a selfie of himself in his suit on Monday alongside the hashtag #toughdayattheoffice
He began: ‘At the end of the day you need to draw a line under it. Stephanie knew months before that radio interview, and I asked for my divorce papers, I’d asked and asked and asked.
‘And it was like, “I’m never gonna get these divorce papers”, because I never got them. We’re divorced – do you know what I mean, that’s what it’s about.’
Ben confessed he’s been left ‘drained’ by the battle to receive the papers and admitted that those around them have remained hopeful about them working their relationship out but he can no longer ‘live a lie’.

Claims: Ben previously accused his estranged wife of holding up their divorce proceedings and not giving him the closure he needs to move on from their relationship
Explaining that he doesn’t believe his ex is withholding the divorce papers on purpose, Ben insisted that all he wants is ‘closure’ from the relationship.
‘I don’t she think was withholding them; I just tried to get – I’ve just still not got them… I don’t want people telling me what to do. I just want closure, I just want to move on with my life and [signing them] is the only way to get closure.’
He shocked fans of Channel 4’s extreme matchmaking show Married At First Sight this month when he announced he is divorcing wife.
His cutting comments come after Ben insisted his marriage was doomed to fail, labelling the short-lived union ‘a chore’ in a piece written for Bella magazine, in which he also claims his estranged wife is delaying divorce proceedings.

Moving on: The 36-year-old property millionaire claimed his police officer ex wasn’t impressed that he announced their TV marriage was over during an interview with FUBAR Radio
The property developer met police officer Steph at their wedding, after both signed up for the third series of the UK show, charming viewers with their instant chemistry.
Ben admits he thought he’d ‘hit the jackpot’ when he first laid eyes on Stephanie on their wedding day, and their honeymoon in Mallorca also saw sparks fly.
But writing for Bella, Ben says it was when the couple returned to London and moved in together that he realised the match was never going to work.
‘On our honeymoon the chemistry was undeniable. But the honeymoon wasn’t reality. We were living in a bubble that soon popped once we returned to real life,’ he says.
Ben explained that, ‘I just didn’t fancy her,’ before calling their marriage ‘a chore’.

Match: The property developer met police officer Steph at their wedding, after both signed up for the third series of the UK show, charming viewers with their instant chemistry
As MAFS viewers saw, Stephanie tried to make their marriage work, desperately willing her husband to talk through their issues.
But Ben has claimed he felt suffocated by his wife and her referral to him as ‘her husband’ despite the fact that their marriage for TV was legally binding.
While the couple decided to stay married in the finale of the show, ultimately their relationship only lasted another few weeks when the cameras stopped filming.
Ben explains the couple stopped living together and only saw each other once a week, before Ben decided to call it quits.

Kiss: Ben admits he thought he’d ‘hit the jackpot’ when he first laid eyes on Stephanie on their wedding day, and their honeymoon in Mallorca also saw sparks fly
‘”It’s not working and I don’t think it ever will,” I said to her.
She cried and said she wanted us to try, but I had to tell her bluntly. “it ain’t there kiddo”,’ he reveals.
The property developer insists he talked to Stephanie about seeking a divorce, despite claims from her friends that the heartbroken police officer only found out her husband wanted to split when he announced the news on FUBAR Radio, with Steph reading the news on MailOnline the next day.

Tears: As MAFS viewers saw, Stephanie tried to make their marriage work, desperately willing her husband to talk through their issues
The couple will have to remain married for a year before they can divorce, but Ben is desperate to move on, giving multiple interviews in recent months while Stephanie has remained silent.
She has had her corner fiercely fought by her friends though, with former Married At First Sight star Sara May leaping to Steph’s defence on social media.
Sara shared a girls’ night out with Steph and fellow MAFS UK star Melissa two weeks ago, with the three ladies posting for selfies on Instagram.

Shock: The property developer insists he talked to Stephanie about seeking a divorce, despite claims from her friends that the heartbroken police officer only found out her husband wanted to split when he announced the news on FUBAR Radio
But as fans in the comments linked to MailOnline’s article revealing Ben had announced his divorce, Sara made the shock revelation that Steph found out about the split via the press too.
‘So we all found out via this article just now too. Even Steph. What a t**t,’ Sara wrote.
She had earlier tweeted: ‘The calibre and integrity of men this show chooses is beyond me sometimes. To announce your divorce to your wife via a radio show and Daily mail article is disgusting.’
‘Not all of the men. Just some. But this one in particular.’