Why did Faye Brookes and Gareth Gates split? Inside the Dancing on Ice star's difficult break-up

Faye Brookes and Gareth Gates split several years ago now, but why did the couple break up?

The former Coronation Street actress was in a relationship with the English singer-songwriter for seven years. And they were even briefly engaged.

But it all came crashing down in the summer of 2019.

Faye Brooks and Gareth Gates were once engaged (Credit: PA)

Why did Faye Brookes and Gareth Gates split?

The 33-year-old's engagement to Gareth was revealed in July of 2019, but the pair broke up soon after. The couple split following reports of Gareth's alleged "controlling" behaviour regarding the actress's career.

A source told The Sun at the time that the engagement had been called off just weeks before news hit the papers.

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"Things had been building up for a while and Faye knew something wasn't right," a source told the paper.

"In the end, she called things but he knew it was coming," they continued, detailing that the actress had become disturbed by Gareth's "controlling" behaviour in regards to her future career plans after leaving Corrie.

"Faye is such an independent and strong woman and she found Gareth's controlling nature hard," the insider added. "He was desperate to manage her and take charge of her career but she really wasn't keen on the idea. He kept pushing for it and in the end she had enough.

"His want to manage her started to really raise questions and red flags for her. That on top of the fact that he spends so much time abroad just made it really tricky. Faye has a really bright future and he knew that after her recent Kate Connor scenes but she wants to do things on her terms. She's auditioning a lot at the moment and it won't be long till she's back on our screens."

Brooks attends ''Pretty Woman'' at Piccadilly Theatre (Credit: PA)

Those close to Gareth Gates denied the claims

A friend close to Gareth rubbished the allegations.

The insider told OK! Magazine at the time: "I don’t know who is feeding the press these made-up stories.

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"I’m sure if you even asked Faye whether these stories are true, she’d say exactly the same. Gareth has never and would never have any interest in managing Faye’s career.

"He wouldn’t know where to start with managing an actress."

Faye Brookes opens up about the split

Faye took to Twitter in the weeks after the breakup to deny that she had found someone new.

"It’s been a really weird week…" She wrote. "I’ve been throwing myself into the gym pretty much every day, anyone who knows me knows how much I love training and keeping fit! It’s great for your physical and mental health. I’m a member of several gyms in Manchester including the fab Barry’s Bootcamp.

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"So (yesterday) there was a pap outside the gym when I got there, taking pictures of me & getting very excited with his camera because I walked in with one of the trainers from the gym – who is a friend [sic]."

She then pleaded, "Just let a girl be, please."

How did Faye Brookes and Gareth Gates meet?

The couple met when they were both working on the UK tour of a production of Legally Blonde back in 2012. They went public with their relationship the following year.

Gareth, who is 36-years-old, played Warner, while Faye played the starring role of Elle.

They proceeded to get engaged in January of 2019. Speaking about the proposal at the time, as reported by Heart, Faye said: "We were both crying the whole way through. Once it was finished, Gareth got down on one knee and said, 'Will you spend the rest of your life with me?' And of course, I said yes straight away."

Gareth Gates pictured with then Faye Brooks (Credit: PA)

Is Faye Brookes single?

Faye confirmed her relationship with Joe Davies in January of 2020.

The pair could be seen spending the New Year together, as she uploaded a picture of her and the personal trainer watching television in bed. She captioned the snap simply with the word, "dreamy".

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She then shared a picture of a Bank of Eros note, which offered an "evening of cuddles". And in a photo posted from her alleged beau's account, Faye can be seen smiling next to the words "lucky guy".

Faye, who played Kate Connor on Coronation Street, was also spotted holding hands with the fitness trainer in December.

The pair are believed to have moved in together in August of 2020, per The Sun.

Brooks confirmed her relationship with Joe Davies in January of 2020 (Credit: PA)

Who is Gareth Gates dating?

Gareth appeared to "confirm" that he was dating Ibiza DJ Chloe McLennan in July of 2020, according to Hello! Magazine.

In a social media post, which has since been deleted, the singer celebrated his 36th birthday by sharing a group photo that showed him standing next to Chloe and some friends and family. "I had the best birthday," he captioned the snap. "These beautiful souls are my world."

It's thought that the pair met in Ibiza at the start of this year.

Gareth Gates pictured attending the press night of American Idiot (Credit: PA)

What is Faye Brookes doing now?

Faye is competing in the 2021 series of Dancing on Ice.

The actress broke the news on Lorraine back in September. Speaking to host Lorraine Kelly, she said:

"I’m so excited! I had to meet with the team, they had to see me on the ice and there was a coach to review the basics. The producers get to know you and this is the first time people will get to see me – not being a character, not hiding behind anything, just Faye. I might be Bambi but my dad used to play ice hockey so we did that often. There were no official lessons but we had fun as a weekend activity."

After the series ends, Faye wouldn't mind landing a role in Netflix series Bridgerton.

She told The Sun: "I love the idea of playing different roles and who knows what the future holds - I want to do it all. I love Bridgerton!"

However, Corrie fans will be delighted to know that she hasn't ruled out a possible return to Coronation Street either.

She added: "My journey at Corrie was open-ended so that's possibly something I could go back to and if there was an opportunity, I would.