EXCLUSIVE: TV chef Phil Vickery sunbathes at the Southport Flower Show with his ex-wife’s girlfriend Lorraine Spanton, whom he spotted kissing last September
When TV chef Phil Vickery was spotted kissing Lorraine Spanton, the best friend of his second ex-wife Fern Britton, in London last September, the act was ruled illegal.
But that humiliation seemed a distant memory yesterday as the 62-year-old This Morning star basked in the sun at the Southport Flower Show.
Barely a spatula length away from him sat 58-year-old Lorraine, hiding her eyes behind sunglasses.
“They spent the day together,” a show attendee tells me, adding that Lorraine watched admiringly as Phil cooked in front of an audience.
“When Phil was done, they went for coffee,” says my green-fingered informant, “and then for a beer.”
TV chef Phil Vickery basked in the sun at the Southport Flower Show on Tuesday. Barely a spatula length away from him sat Lorraine Spanton, 58, hiding her eyes behind sunglasses
Vickery was spotted kissing Spanton, the best friend of his second ex-wife Fern Britton, in London last September
Fern Britton and Phil Vickery are pictured together in April 2017
Vickery is seen smiling as he looks at Stanton during their outing at the Southport Flower Show
But the pair have refrained from publicly displaying their affection, which could have led to misinterpretation – as was the case last year when they had to deny speculation of a romance.
On that occasion, Vickery – who split from Britton, 66, three and a half years ago – insisted their meeting was innocent.
When asked about a possible new romance, he said of Lorraine, who has worked in hospitality and has two children with her estranged husband Simon, “She’s just a friend.” “For heaven’s sake, we’re just friends over lunch.”
Lorraine admitted last year that she had moved out of her marital home, but stressed that “it has nothing to do with the pictures incident.”
Meanwhile, Fern, who quit her daytime television role on This Morning in 2009, was far from a woman despised for the pictures. She dismissed speculation about a relationship between the two as “not true”. I wonder what she’ll say this time…
A Vickery representative could not be reached for comment.
Vickery and Stanton were all smiles as they sat together at the flower show on Tuesday
Stanton smiles as she looks at Vickery during their outing
Stanton appears to show a document to Vickery, who is carrying a box, as the two walk together