Fern Britton's ex-husband Phil Vickery has broken his silence after reportedly kissing her best friend.
The TV chef, 61, was papped with Lorraine Stanton last month in a pic which sent fans into a frenzy.
The exchange raised eyebrows amongst fans with Fern, 65, and Lorraine, 58, having been pals for years.
After keeping silent after the pictures came to light, This Morning chef Phil has now responded to the rumours.
When asked about his potential new relationship he said: "Could not possibly comment on that because she's just a friend.
"We're just mates having lunch for goodness sake."
Asked if ex-wife Fern was content with his explanation, Phil stated: "Yes, she put a tweet out.
"There you go, we're friends," reports MailOnline.
The tweet in question saw the former This Morning host pooh-pooh the idea anything was going on between the pair.
After the pictures emerged, Fern tweeted: "Good morning all. Just to clear up any concerns [...] It is not true."
Fern and Lorraine have been close friends for many years – with the former Ready Steady Cook star sharing several images of the pals together on social media over the years.
Just a few weeks before Fern announced her split from This Morning chef Phil, she enjoyed a girls trip with Lorraine and other pals to Lake Windermere.
Fern and Phil announced their decision to end their 20 year marriage in a joint statement in 2020.
The statement read: "After more than 20 happy years together, [we] have decided to go our separate ways. We will always share a great friendship and our lovely children."
Meanwhile, Lorraine is said to have her own relationship problems.
Lorraine told the Mail she no longer lives in her marital home, but stressed the "difficult time" she was going through with her family had nothing to do with the recent photos.
Her husband Simon has also spoken out - claiming he doesn't know when he will have a chance to speak to his estranged wife about the now infamous pics
In July, Fern admitted she'd wished she'd try harder to make her marriage with Phil work.
Speaking about her divorce in an interview with Prima magazine, she said: "I don’t want to be the poster girl for separation because a lot of people go through the same thing.
"Often, the children leave home and you look at each other and go, 'Ah, where do we go from here?' I only wish I was the sort of person who could have persevered through that, but I couldn't."
