Fern Britton, the beloved television presenter and author, is set to return to screens this Sunday with a new episode of her ITV series 'Fern Britton: Inside the Vet's'. The show follows the 68-year-old as she goes behind the scenes at The Grove Vets, a family-run practice in Bristol. In the upcoming episode, airing July 19 on ITV1, Fern meets a Jack Russell terrier with a mysterious lump and a 10-month-old cat injured in a fight.
Fern Britton's Famous Ex-Husband
Fans may be surprised to learn that Fern was previously married to celebrity chef Phil Vickery for 20 years. The couple met on the set of BBC Two's 'Ready Steady Cook' in 1999, a year after Fern separated from her first husband, television executive Clive Jones. Fern and Clive, who have three children together, married in 1988 and separated in 1998. After her divorce was finalized, Fern married Phil in spring 2000, and they welcomed their daughter Winnie the following year.
The End of a 20-Year Marriage
In 2020, Fern and Phil announced their separation with a joint statement: 'After more than 20 happy years together, Phil and I have decided to go our separate ways. We will always share a great friendship and our lovely children.' Fern later revealed that her marriage to Phil 'fell apart' shortly after the deaths of her parents. Her mother, Ruth, died in January 2018, followed by her father, actor Tony Britton, in 2019. 'My mum died in 2018 and my dad died in 2019, and then my marriage died,' she told The Telegraph.
Cutting Contact and Moving Forward
Sharing a further update last year, Fern told Yours magazine: 'He hasn't spoken to me for six years now. As soon as my mum died, he stopped talking to me.' Despite the painful split, Fern remains mindful of her daughter's feelings: 'I'm not going to bad-mouth him in front of [my daughter] - at least, I try very hard not to. I was the child of divorced parents and my mum never bad-mouthed my father.'
Fern has also faced other challenges, including a 15-year phone hacking ordeal and a stalker who was given a restraining order. 'For a while, I was wondering what else could possibly happen. But lots of women endure difficult stuff and we just live with it and keep going,' she reflected.
'Fern Britton: Inside the Vet's' is available to stream on ITVX.
