Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan's daughter Chloe reveals her parents have 'really struggled' during their 38-year marriage

By Niomi Harris For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan's daughter has revealed that her parents have 'really struggled' at times during their 38-year marriage.

The iconic duo first met back in the 80s while working at ITV Granada Television, before going on to tie the knot in 1986.

The couple went on to welcome children Jack and Chloe, while also carving out a successful presenting career together, fronting shows including This Morning and their very own teatime magazine show. 

And in a new interview, daughter Chloe, 37 - who recently split from husband James Haskell - opened up about how her parents have navigated their four-decade long relationship as she divulged the secret to their long-lasting union. 

When asked how her folks had sustained such a lengthy marriage, she told Closer magazine: 'They would honestly say the same thing - that the secret to them having such a long marriage is to not get divorced.

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan's daughter has revealed that her parents have 'really struggled' at times during their 38-year marriage [pictured in April]

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan's daughter has revealed that her parents have 'really struggled' at times during their 38-year marriage [pictured in April]

Chloe opened up about how her parents have navigated their four-decade long relationship as she divulged the secret to their long-lasting union

Chloe opened up about how her parents have navigated their four-decade long relationship as she divulged the secret to their long-lasting union 

'They’ve been together for over 40 years and during that time there have been periods where they have really struggled, but they kept going and stayed together. I don’t think it was ever bad enough for them to split.'

The personal trainer went on to praise the pair for setting a 'pretty gold standard' before noting that she 'hit the jackpot' when it came to parents.

Despite their successful union, Chloe admitted that she never felt any 'pressure' to continue with her own marriage because of her parents.

Chloe, who co-parents two-year-old daughter Bodhi with estranged husband James, 39, explained: 'I have never felt pressure to stay with James because of my parents. I wanted very much for my marriage to work out, especially after we had Bodhi, but as time went on, it just became clearer and clearer that it wasn't working and that we wouldn't be together for the rest of our lives.'

10 months on from announcing her shock split from the rugby player, Chloe has now told that she's 'open' to dating again. 

Describing herself as a 'lazy romantic' who wants to be with some one she can drink wine and watch TV with, Chloe said she said it would be 'nice' to be with a partner again.

However, she insisted that she has no interest in dating apps. with her daughter and fitness business currently her main priority at the moment. 

Meanwhile, as Chloe navigates single life, her famous parents recently reflected upon their relationship in their Channel 5 documentary, Our Best Bits - In Our Own Words, which aired last month.

When asked how her folks had sustained such a lengthy marriage, she told Closer magazine: 'They would honestly say the same thing - that the secret to them having such a long marriage is to not get divorced' [pictured in 2013]

When asked how her folks had sustained such a lengthy marriage, she told Closer magazine: 'They would honestly say the same thing - that the secret to them having such a long marriage is to not get divorced' [pictured in 2013]

'They¿ve been together for over 40 years and during that time there have been periods where they have really struggled, but they kept going and stayed together [pictured in 2019]

'They’ve been together for over 40 years and during that time there have been periods where they have really struggled, but they kept going and stayed together [pictured in 2019]

The iconic duo first met back in the 80s while working at ITV Granada Television, before going on to tie the knot in 1986. [pictured in 1988]

The iconic duo first met back in the 80s while working at ITV Granada Television, before going on to tie the knot in 1986. [pictured in 1988]

The pair spoke about the first time they met at Granada and the initial chemistry between them. 

At the time Judy was wedded to journalist David Henshaw and Richard was in the midst of separating from his first wife Lynda.

Judy said: 'I remember you coming into the newsroom on your first day, you were wearing a ridiculous sky blue suit... you just looked like a pr**.

'I was assigned as your minder, they had a system at Grenada that the newbie would be assigned a father or a mother to show them the ropes literally, and I was your mother.'

Reminiscing, Richard said: 'I suddenly felt two hands on the back of my neck and I heard this voice saying ''I'm your mummy'' and I turned around and it was this beautiful blonde. 

Despite their successful union, Chloe admitted that she never felt any 'pressure' to continue with her own marriage because of her parents [pictured with estranged husband James Haskell]

Despite their successful union, Chloe admitted that she never felt any 'pressure' to continue with her own marriage because of her parents [pictured with estranged husband James Haskell]

10 months on from announcing her shock split from the rugby player , Chloe has now told that she's 'open' to dating again

10 months on from announcing her shock split from the rugby player , Chloe has now told that she's 'open' to dating again

Meanwhile, as Chloe navigates single life, her famous parents recently reflected upon their relationship in their Channel 5 documentary , Our Best Bits - In Our Own Words, which aired last month [pictured]

Meanwhile, as Chloe navigates single life, her famous parents recently reflected upon their relationship in their Channel 5 documentary , Our Best Bits - In Our Own Words, which aired last month [pictured] 

'It seemed an off thing to say so I was like ''what??'' So yeah she was my assigned mummy.'

Opening up about their first kiss the pair revealed it was after a working day in Blackpool in the back of a black cab. 

'We were filming in Blackpool, we spend a very long day filming promos, we really hit it off. We ended up getting a black cab, because the crew had gone, we went back to Manchester which was a good hours drive.

'It was in the darkness of the cab that we kind of fell for each other really, and kissed.'

James HaskellThis MorningRichard Madeley