Louise Redknapp ready to date after ‘wishing she had tried’ with ex Jamie

Louise Redknapp, 48, was married to footballer Jamie Redknapp from 1998 until 2018 and they share sons Charley, 18, and 14-year-old Beau.

The former Strictly star said that while she wouldn’t go “actively looking” for a new partner, she has an “open heart” for whatever the future holds.

“People ask me about dating and although I wouldn’t say I ever go out actively looking, I’ve got an open heart for what the future may bring,” Louise revealed.

“Right now, though, all of my energy goes into my boys and my job,” she added to The Sunday Times.

“I speak to Charley, who is at university in Arizona, every day. I still have the occasional night out drinking cocktails as I love to let my hair down. 

“If Luther Vandross comes on, you’ll find me on the dancefloor.”

Jamie and Louise’s marriage came to an end after 19 years in 2017 – just months after she had been a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing – and their divorce was finalised in 2018.

Louise commented on her partnership with professional Kevin Clifton in her book, You’ve Got This: And Other Things I Wish I Had Known, which was released earlier in 2021.

She suggested Strictly contestants and their dance partners’ relationships are only temporary, writing: “It’s not real. Once the show finishes, you move on. You go, ‘OK, we weren’t that good friends!’”

In her book, she also opened up about the collapse of her marriage and warned fans not to make the same mistakes she had.

Explaining that she spent too long in her marriage trying to make everyone else happy and not giving time to herself, she said: “I wish I’d tried.

“I want to say to anyone thinking of running: Just slow down. Don’t run. Because once you run too fast, you can’t make up the ground you’ve lost.

“Stop, say what you need, say what you think, don’t be afraid to say what’s really going on. You don’t have to be quiet.”

Meanwhile, Sky Sports pundit Jamie, 48, married model Frida Andersson, 38, in October 2021 and welcomed their first child Raphael together in November. 

The couple also has six children between them from their former marriages, making them a blended family of nine.

Frida has four children from her marriage to American hedge fund tycoon Jonathan Lourie: a girl and three boys.

When Jamie and Frida announced the birth of their baby Raphael, the proud dad told his social media fans: “Meet Raphael Anders Redknapp, we’re so in love, mum is doing so well too. 

“We can’t thank the amazing doctors and nurses at Chelsea and Westminster enough. So excited for him to meet my boys.”