Kara Tointon's telling signs she'd secretly split from fiancé Marius

Kara Tointon has remained silent on her reported split from her fiancé Marius Jensen, which was announced in October 2022.

The EastEnders actress began dating the chiropractor in 2017 and they made their public debut at Wimbledon that year. They announced their engagement in November 2018 after she was spotted wearing a ruby and diamond engagement ring.

Marius reportedly popped the question shortly before the birth of their first child, a son called Frey, now five. They expanded their family in January 2021 with the birth of their second son Helly, three, but they split before walking down the aisle.

While the couple remained tight-lipped about their wedding plans, it's thought they had their hearts set on exchanging vows in Norway. Too Good to be True star Kara told HELLO! In 2018: "We are hoping next year, perhaps in Norway or maybe in London. My mum hasn’t been too well over the last year or so and I want her to be able to enjoy it. Seeing her with Frey and dealing with everything she has to right now is overwhelming and I couldn’t be more proud. I just want her to be back to herself again. That’s our priority."

These plans were put on the back burner following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, and in October 2022, reports emerged that the couple had quietly split ten months earlier. This would mean they called time on their relationship in December 2021, well before photos emerged of Marius kissing another woman.

DISCOVER:

• Emmerdale's Matthew Wolfenden addresses split from Charley Webb: 'It was not my decision'

• Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello reach divorce settlement after $100m prenup

Kara – who previously dated Strictly's Artem Chigvintsev – was never one to comment on her love life before the split, briefly telling the MailOnline in the past: "I’m not saying anything – I cringe when I read about my love life."

However, there were a few subtle clues that she had ended her engagement, starting with her public tributes. Kara previously shared sporadic family photos and loved-up snaps with her fiancé on social media, but the last picture she posted of him and their son on a boat was in August 2021, shortly after their last photos as a family of four in honour of Father's Day in June.

They were replaced by sweet photos of the actress' solo parenting time with her sons, including praising her "most amazing time in Bath" with them and enjoying a wholesome trip to the park where they played on the slides.

Despite her split from Marius, Kara suggested they remained on good terms for co-parenting, telling Closer in an interview in 2022: "We’re a good team."

When her second son was born, she described him to HELLO! As "so chilled" and "an incredibly cool little man," while adding "having two feels strangely easier."

She has continued to open up about motherhood, telling The Sun on Sunday that her two kids remain her highest priority. "I don't think I look young, I'm ageing like the rest of us. Motherhood hits you like a punchbag, so there's no beauty regime at the moment," she said. "But it has been such an amazing dose of reality. It's very grounding, motherhood, I can tell you that. Everything goes out of the window and you just have one focus."

READ: Emmerdale's Matthew Wolfenden addresses split from Charley Webb: 'It was not my decision'