Former Coronation Street star Helen Flanagan has admitted she ‘fell in love’ with ex-boxer David Haye and burst into tears when questioned about her former flame
14:43, 23 Jan 2026Updated 14:49, 23 Jan 2026
Helen admitted she ‘fell in love’ with David during their romance in 2023(Image: ITV)
Helen Flanagan has spoken out about the David Haye “throuple” rumours.
The former Coronation Street star, 35, had a romance with the former boxer, 45, back in 2023 that ended in December of that year. There were rumours that she was part of a “throuple” with David and his girlfriend Sian Osborne, but she has denied this.
Helen also admitted that she ‘fell in love’ with David during the fling and said she believes he ‘loves’ her – and his girlfriend Sian – as well. The soap star has now spoken about her former flame again in her new autobiography, Head and Heart.
Shutting down the “throuple” claims, she wrote: “I’m not a prude, but I’ve never been into that – it was David I liked.”
The soap star broke down in tears when discussing the fling in a new interview(Image: INSTAGRAM)
In her interview with Daily Mail, she said: “The relationship that I had with David was just David on his own. My evenings were just spent with him, that’s what only ever happened.”
Asked if she was part of the “throuple”, she said: “No, no, no, not at all.” When asked about the time she bought the boxer a Cartier Trinity bracelet for his birthday and delivered it to his hotel, she burst into tears.
Helen has denied being in a “throuple” with David and his girlfriend Sian Osborne(Image: davidhaye/Twitter)
She asked: “Did I put that in the book? Oh, god, that actually makes me cry. I don’t know. Sorry. It’s really hard. That is a little bit embarrassing.”
Helen added: “Why did I do that? Because I wanted him to love me properly.” The mum-of-three also claimed: “It was such a toxic situation. Since then, I’ve learnt to love myself. To be a stronger woman.”
Helen previously described the fling with David as a “situationship”. She told the Celebs Go Dating experts in 2024: “It was quite something, it’s really hard for me to talk about it he had a girlfriend and an open relationship.”
Helen first met David on I’m A Celebrity in 2012(Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
“I didn’t mean to fall in love with him but I did. We did have this amazing connection together. We were like fire together. It was weird. I think he does love his girlfriend but he loves me as well. It just brings me to a part of my life that was quite dark, really.”
Helen said that she felt “very lonely” at the time following her split from footballer ex Scott Sinclair, with whom she shares three children. It took her over nine months to start dating again after they broke up.
David and Sian are in an open relationship(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Boi)
She confessed: “I was in love with the man. I wouldn’t have enjoyed watching the man I was in love with having sex with another woman. That’s not for me.”
Helen also admitted she felt “guilty” towards Sian, who is in an open relationship with David, adding: “I didn’t feel nice about it at all. It makes me feel really bad and really upsets me because I’m a nice girl, I don’t mean to hurt people, and I felt really, really bad about it.”
“I felt really guilty about it, but I was just really lonely. I found it really hard, you know? I found it really difficult, but obviously, if you sleep with someone for quite a long time you do fall in love with them, and I was just lonely and it just happened.”
Helen and David first met in the jungle when they both appeared on I’m A Celebrity back in 2012.
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