BGT star Alesha Dixon's fans were stunned when it was revealed she had split up with her partner of 18 years, Azuka Onoye, in 2024. The Britain's Got Talent judge, 46, who is back on our screens in the ITV talent show tonight, shares two daughters with the dancer, 44, who she once described as a "keeper"'.
Admitting she played "hard to get for about a year" while Azuka was wooing her after they met in 2006, Alesha finally gave in before reportedly secretly marrying her man in 2017 and welcoming children, Azura and Anaya. However, sadly, the pair called time on their relationship last year, with pals of the couple saying they were 'more like friends'.
Speaking to The Sun about Alesha and Azuka last year when news of the split broke, a source said: "Alesha's been quietly telling people close to her that she believes their relationship is over and they're going to separate. She and Azuka have been together almost two decades but their relationship has become more like a friendship.".
In 2017, Alesha, who was married to So Solid Crew star, MC Harvey, before he cheated on her with Javine Hylton, introduced Azuka as her "lovely husband" during an appearance Michael McIntyre's Big Show Christmas Special in December 2017. However, neither confirmed if a wedding took place.
The couple met in 2006 following Alesha's one year-long marriage to Harvey, when Azuka first worked as a Mis-Teeq back-up dancer before being hired as the star's creative director. Admitting on the Jonathan Ross Show in 2018, she initially played "hard to get", Alesha lifted the lid on when she fell for Azuka - quite literally - after recovering from a foot operation.
She said: "He was sleeping on the floor because I was on the couch, I couldn't even get up the stairs. If he can carry me to the toilet then he's a keeper. "I had the foot operation and I couldn't walk and he was literally sleeping on the floor looking after me every day. I was just looking at him thinking: 'That is for better or for worse isn't it?' I looked a state.".
Alesha gushed over Azuka again during a 2014 appearance on Piers Morgan's Life Stories and said she could 'authentically be herself' when she was with him. She said: "I don't have to be anything other than who I am and it's a great feeling when you can just be yourself with someone. And it's like being with my best friend every day.".
Meanwhile speaking about their family, she told Giovanna Fletcher's Happy Mum podcast in 2020: "[Azuka] was the first person that I'd met, that I knew that we could have children together because of our values, our morals, our thinking aligned.". And she later told HELLO! in 2022: "If you choose to have children, you are their first introduction to the world, I make a very conscious effort that my daughters have a very loving, supportive home with two parents who are great role models. I feel a sense of responsibility.".
Neither Alesha or Azuka have commented on their split and both keep their private life out of the spotlight. However, they continue to co-parent their girls and are said to have prioritised maintaining an amicable partnership for their wellbeing. The Mirror has contacted Alesha's rep for comment on this story.
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