Grant Bovey speaks to his ex-wife Anthea Turner "every day."
Grant Bovey and Anthea Turner
The 'Celebrity Big Brother' star divorced the television presenter last year after he had a year-long affair with socialite Zoe De Mallet Morgan and, although they ended on bitter terms, he's adamant they now get on really well and she pushed him to join the famous house last week.
Speaking on 'This Morning' on Tuesday (09.08.16), he said: "She was keen [for me to go on 'CBB'] and for the record Anthea and I speak to each other every day."
And despite their messy divorce, the 55-year-old businessman is adamant she didn't ban him from opening up about their 15-year marriage on national television.
He explained: "She wanted me to show the true side to me ... Anthea and I definitely didn't decide on any rules beforehand ... It's a really strange atmosphere, you meet your housemates and as the days unfold you get more comfortable with them and of course you start talking about your previous life, what you did before. And I have no problem at all talking about my time with Anthea."
Grant was initially pushed to join the reality TV series by a close friend - who has since passed - and, although he was the first to be given the boot last week, he has no regrets about his time in there.
He said: "The reason I went in is actually a very sad tale. My best friend - who I've known since I was 11 - someone I spoke to every day, became very ill in March.
"And I was with him in hospital the last time I saw him, and we were laughing and joking and he said, 'You should do 'Big Brother'. And I said, 'Why? Why should I do that?' and he said, 'to prove to everyone that you really are an idiot.' He was laughing and joking.
"Tragically, he died a few days later, but what he said resonated with me and that's how lots of phone calls were made and I ended up on the show."
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