He’s tall, dark and handsome with a wicked sense of humour and a history of getting way too close to his co-stars, and now Beau Ryan has been caught up in Jackie O’s shock split with her husband, British-born fashion photographer Lee Henderson.
After it was revealed Jackie had moved out of the $6.7 million mansion she and Lee shared in the Sydney suburb of Vaucluse, friends last week confirmed that her increasingly close bond with KIIS FM co-star Beau Ryan was the source of ongoing tension between the couple.
‘Obvious chemistry’
Lee – who has daughter Kitty, seven, with Jackie O – reportedly started to feel like he was playing second fiddle to The Footy Show star and retired rugby league player, even though there is no suggestion Beau and Jackie are romantically involved.
“It wasn’t just that there’s an obvious chemistry between the two of them, but Jackie constantly texts and calls Beau,” one source claims.
“I completely understand why Lee was jealous. Jackie gushes about Beau all the time, and they laugh a lot together. And he’s been raving about Jackie to anyone who will listen.”
Beau has co-hosted with Jackie when Kyle’s been off sick (Image: Jackie O Instagram)
In fact, Jackie’s KIIS FM co-host Kyle Sandilands recently suggested that she prefers working with Beau over him, revealing Jackie, 43, sent him a “big long text” when he took a sick day in September, encouraging him not to rush back to work as Beau was on hand to step in!
“She wanted me gone for a week,” Kyle said, sharing a snippet of the text message on air.
“[Jackie wrote] ‘Hoping you’re not in too much pain. Just letting you know that there’s no pressure if you’re not up to coming in tomorrow… which I doubt you will be… Beau is all good to fill in. Maybe let me or [producer] Bruno know how you’re travelling later today. But I’m sure you won’t be ready for work unless some miracle happens… If not all good, Beau locked in for the next few days, if not a week while you recover. So don’t feel bad at all.'”
WATCH: Kyle Sandilands thinks Jackie O prefers co-hosting radio with Beau Ryan more than with him. Post continues…
Jackie has moved out of the family home. (Image: Splash)
Several problems
Jackie’s friendship with Beau, 33, was just one of a number of issues that led to Jackie secretly moving out of her marital home three months ago. The radio host, who earns $6 million a year, told her fans last week that “a separation is never easy.”
“There have been problems for a while now, and Lee felt like he was putting in the hard yards to try and keep the relationship afloat, and that Jackie didn’t seem as committed to making it work,” our source says.
Marriage troubles are something Beau and Jackie have in common.
Woman’s Day revealed in 2015 that Beau was cheating on his wife Kara with former Hi-5 member Lauren Brandt, after Lauren’s former fiance Warren Riley revealed intimate messages between the pair.
The Ryans managed to survive the affair, and welcomed their second child in July last year. “We’ve all learned from our mistakes,” Beau admitted in August.
Jackie has also seemingly been on a mission to reinvent herself in the past 12 months, shedding 10kg in what radio insiders say was a huge confidence boost to Jackie, who reportedly plans to walk away from her “dream” home in Vaucluse to start a new life.
“She’s got a whole new wardrobe and she’s definitely been making more of an effort with her hair and makeup, despite those early morning starts,” the source says.
Beau and wife Kara welcomed their second child last year. (Image: Instagram)
Lee was tired of being on-air fodder
As one half of Australia’s most powerful radio duo, it’s Jackie’s job to have fresh, funny and engaging content ready to go each day and the mother-of-one often shares revealing details of her personal life on air.
Over the years, Jackie has ribbed on everything from Lee’s manscaping, underwear choice and their sex life.
It might have been shared just to get an audience laugh but Lee is said to have become tired of being the brunt of the his wife and Kyle’s jokes.
