In his first interview since announcing his split, millionaire heartbreaker Ben insists he’s NOT a love rat and reveals the truth behind his doomed marriage to a stranger
IT was the only Married At First Sight wedding to survive the show, but just weeks after the cameras stopped rolling, Ben and Stephanie shocked fans with the news that they’d split.
The pair were plunged into further controversy when, just one day after Ben, 36, announced the marriage was over, a 20-year-old named Lucy accused him of cheating on Steph with her throughout the entire duration of the show.
Speaking for the first time since the scandal and split, Ben Jardine talks exclusively to The Sun Online insisting he always wanted his marriage to a stranger to work.
The property tycoon says: “I did kiss someone but Steph knew it was all over before that. I'm sorry, I just didn't love her."
Reacting to Lucy’s claims, Ben says she made advances which he eventually spurned.
“At the time I was completely committed to my marriage but I was being pursued all the time and I just thought, ‘I don’t need this.’
“Yes we did have a kiss and a cuddle, but then I thought, ‘No, this is wrong,’ I completely called time on it. It was only a friendship to me and people are reading too much into it.
Ben adds: “I need to choose my friends more wisely, and I shouldn’t put myself in these positions.”
And while he acknowledges that the kiss did happen before he told wife Steph, 32, he wanted a divorce, Ben insists it was clear to both of them that the marriage was over after cameras had stopped rolling.
He says: “It happened in December and I was still married to Steph, we were meant to be seeing how things went but we both knew [it was over].
“We weren’t together. We just needed closure and I can only apologise.”
The couple married on September 30 and after a rocky three months, Ben told Steph he wanted a divorce in December.
By law the couple will have to remain married a year before they can officially divorce but he is desperate for them both to move on with their lives.
He said: “Steph’s a wonderful woman with a heart of gold and 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.
“I’m a Catholic boy and I take marriage very seriously - but it just wasn’t working.
“Over Christmas I had an operation for a boxing injury so I couldn’t end it then as I was in hospital and she was so supportive but we were sleeping in separate rooms by then - but in the New Year I finished it.
“I sat her down and said, ‘Look I’ve got to cut ties here, it’s not fair on you,’ and it killed me.
“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.
“I just hope she’s moved on by 30th September and has met the Prince Charming she deserves.”
Ben speaks glowingly of police officer Steph, but says the cracks in their marriage were clear as their personalities just clashed too much.
“We were scientifically the perfect match, but we clashed behind the scenes as we’re two very dominant people and someone was always trying to take the centre of the ring.
“When she was upset I didn’t know whether to hug her or leave the room. It was clear we didn’t know each other at all.”
Scenes showed the pair locked in a series of conflicts which ranged from tearful arguments to petty bickers. Then there was the moment Ben left his wedding ring at home and viewers saw Steph distraught in scenes on the show, but he explains that his fingers were so swollen after injuring his hand he couldn’t wear the ring.
Ben said: “There were lots of silly arguments like arguing over a cup of tea one day, as I’d put the wrong milk in, and it didn’t go well.
“Suddenly then old things from relationships came in as I remember my ex moaning about that, it was silly little arguments like that.”
Ben reveals another massive factor in the breakdown of their marriage was his cheating ex who haunted their entire marriage and he admits many times that he was still harbouring many deep-rooted insecurities from the 12-year relationship.
“I tried and I gave it my everything but suddenly things from my past relationship were coming up, it was like living with someone started to bring up all the memories.
“In my past relationship I was deeply in love and I thought that was my forever and suddenly she left me for someone else one day, and I tried to save it for two years.
“This time I thought, I’m not doing that again, I’m not wasting Steph’s time like someone wasted mine. I had all these scars on my heart that I thought had healed, but it had been smashed to pieces.
“When my ex left me she took my best years, and there was no way I would ever take Steph’s best years from her.”
He adds: “Steph is perfect and is a wonderful person, but I need to feel like me again.
“You’ve got to love yourself before you move on, I’m tempted to go to a monastery to find myself.”
Ben hasn’t given up on love, but certainly won’t be pulling out all the stops to find it again.
He said: “I need to concentrate on myself but I’m not going to go looking for love, this day and age everything’s so fast, but I’m hoping something will happen when you least expect it.
“Hurting someone hurt even more than having my heart broken, but it’s taught me a lesson - you can’t go looking for something.
“I don’t know what my perfect woman is, I’ll know when I find her.”
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