Hayley Palmer is 'ready to date again' after split from Mark Labbett (2024)

Hayley Palmer has revealed she's ready to date again following her split from The Chase's Mark Labbett.

The TV presenter, 43,seemed to have put her heartbreak behind her as she put on a cheerful display at the National Reality TV Awards, held at the Porchester Hall in London on Wednesday evening.

Meanwhile, her ex Mark, who she attended the event with in 2023, was a no show, despite The Chase winning Best Game Show.

Hayley exclusively told MailOnline: 'I'm ready to date again. I regret crying over him on TV, I'm over it.

'I don't care about him anymore and want to move on.'

Hayley is now under new management and revealed she has 'exciting things' happening in her career that she wants to focus on.

Hayley dazzled in a shimmering pink sequinned dress from Dress 2 Party as she threw up a peace sign while grinning widely outside the venue.

She later looked ready to change into her pyjamas and get into bed, as she wasted no time in kicking off her high heels after the night of celebrations.

Earlier this month, Hayley told the My Dirty Laundry podcast that she is having counselling for 'betrayal trauma' after splitting from The Chase star Mark, aka The Beast.

She admitted she is having 'nightmares and flashbacks' weeks after the quizzer, 59, broke up with her in a three-minute phone call, leaving her blindsided.

Hayley said that despite Mark assuring her he was getting a divorce from his wife Katie, 32, who he split from in 2020 and has a son with, he admitted he had changed his mind.

She recalled: 'The way he did it, his voice still haunts me to this day. I'm having counselling because someone told me, "What you've had is betrayal trauma".

'They said, 'Have you been having flashbacks and nightmares and anxiety?' I said, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what I get'. It's just the shock to your body of it completely coming out of the blue.'

Mark and Hayley had put on a host of loved-up displays ahead of their shock split, including a smitten appearance on Loose Women earlier this year, to chat about their one-year anniversary, and Hayley said the split came out of the blue.

Explaining that her relationship with Mark had been the happiest of her life, she called his final words to her 'chilling.'

She said: 'He called me and said, "How are you? Are you on GB News this Saturday?" I was like, "Yeah, I'm booked to go on, can't wait"... I was telling him everything.

'And then he said, "Right, this is not gonna be easy to tell you, but you were right. I don't want to get a divorce".'

Hayley said she just put down the phone and was so shocked she couldn't feel her body and had a full blown panic attack.

Unlike other relationships she had been in, she felt there had been no warning signs and the shock of it has left her suffering from a low sense of self-worth.

She said: 'I wish we could have just sat down and just said, "Look, this is the situation. Can we make it work? Okay, let's stick together. Let's put a statement out together"'.

'Because it all happened and I felt completely alone. I felt really scared. I am a positive person but I couldn't get out of bed because I felt so low.'

Since the call, the two have had no form of contact and Hayley has cut ties with the man she used to love.

Speaking to FEMAIL this month, she explained: 'After I heard the coldness in his voice, I just blocked him on everything. I give so much love and trust. I don't give second chances, I've always been strong with that.

'My stuff is still in his car and flat but it's material things and my mental health is the most important thing.

'The only thing we'd ever had a heated discussion about is I would say, "what's going on in your divorce" and he would say he was getting round to it.'

Hayley added that she was so devastated by the break-up that the pain was akin to grief, saying: 'It feels like a death, it feels like going through the stages of grief.

'I felt completely humiliated in front of everyone. Our relationship was very public so it was very embarrassing - that's made it really hard.

'I felt very vulnerable. We could have talked it through with how we would deal with the press. Just having that phone and leaving me out to dry was a lot to take.'

During their relationship, Mark was still technically married to Katie Labbett, who he had been with for seven years prior to Hayley.

She explained that the divorce had been a source of contention for the couple since day one - though Mark had insisted he was still going ahead with it.

Hayley said: 'I thought I'd give it to a year to say it again because after a year we need some progress. I think we could have worked through it, if he'd explained why he didn't want to get a divorce.'

After the break up in May, Mark spoke out about the split, blaming the couple's 16-year age gap for the end of their romance.

Left to pick up the pieces of their public relationship, Hayley took to Instagram to share a post telling fans that the two were calling it quits.

She wrote: 'It is with regret I announce that myself and Mark have gone our separate ways. We had the best year together and I truly wish him all the best for the future. Off I go to listen to Taylor Swift.'

At the time, a source told The Sun: 'Mark had a lovely time with Hayley and has a lot of respect for her but they wanted different things.

'She loves getting dressed up and going out to parties and showbiz events, whereas he prefers to stay at home. Mark felt there was too much of an age gap between them for long-term success. They are still friendly.

'Away from his job on telly and filming, Mark enjoys a quiet life and spending time with his son. He is still hopeful he can meet someone to settle down with one day.'

However, Hayley shut down theories that their age was the cause of the split saying 'it never got in the way' of their relationship, insisting: 'It wasn't to do with the age gap.'

One of the reasons that the split was so heart wrenching for the TV presenter was that it was totally 'unexpected' and that Mark had given no 'signs' that he was unhappy.

Hayley said the two rarely had disagreements other than when they were talking about Mark's divorce with Katie, and their seven-year-old son, Lawrence - whom Hayley was banned from seeing.

The pair, who met through their work, said the fact they didn't see each other too often meant they felt their bond was stronger.

However, Hayley said that despite what happened she has nothing but fond memories of her time with Mark and wants to help others in the same position.

She said: 'I don't have anything bad to say about him personally. He wasn't The Beast. He was like a kind, lovely gentleman to me, which makes it worse kind of. It's just such a shame.

'I've been working so hard on myself, but every morning now I'm psyching myself up, doing my mindset work to be able to cope.

'I still have times where I just walk back into my flat and burst into tears. I miss him so much. but it gets easier each day and I'm getting stronger each day.

'I'm so lucky I've got so many lovely people around me, honestly. They've got me through it and I want to help people in the same position as me.'

But Hayley added that there is no chance she and Mark will get back together despite how much she loves him.

She said: 'I've always seen the good in people. But equally, I don't give second chances. So as soon as I heard those words from him, I would never forgive that because I've always been strong.'

And as for dating other people, Hayley said she's had some handsome men sliding into her DMs so when she feels ready: 'Watch this space.'

She added: 'I still have hope that there is someone out there for me. Maybe I'm deluded, but I do.'