APPEARING alongside his brothers Adam and Scott, Ryan Thomas was in a particularly jubilant mood as he described his perfect day – one without his fiancee Lucy Mecklenburgh.
His surprising comment came as this month – seemingly out of the blue – the .
The couple – who share two children – had previously spent years and thousands of pounds turning the pad into their forever home.
Just months ago the couple were planning to overhaul their garden and only a week before, , 35, said she hoped to finally marry, 42, “as long as they didn’t move house again”.
The chain of events has sparked a cacophony of whispers surrounding the couple.
Those close to the pair insist there is nothing sinister about the decision to sell their house, but it’s done little to quieten the concerns.
My insider explained: “When Lucy moved to it was a really big deal. She left her beloved first home, which she was so proud of.
“It seems very strange that they are looking to move on already and the optics don’t look great after Ryan was spouting off about them having separate bedrooms and living rooms – and then saying his dream day is when she isn’t there.
“At the end of the day though, it’s each to their own, of course they have ups and downs like any couple, but they seem happy enough – even if it’s not entirely conventional from the outside.”
Ryan – best known for playing Jason Grimshaw in from 2000-2016 – first purchased the Edwardian property near Stockport for just £675,000 in 2021.
Lucy later said he was a “very brave man” for purchasing it without her even seeing it.
Her move to has been viewed as a real U-turn by many – this was the woman who always wanted to stay in to be close to her family and friends.
The pair – particularly Lucy – spent thousands of pounds renovating the property as they modernised the kitchen, living room and bedrooms.
The property also boasts a walk-in wardrobe, Pilates room and a stunning outdoor patio and has now gone on the market for £1.25m.
The decision came just months after Lucy sold her London home of 11 years – something she found incredibly tough.
My insider said: “It certainly seems to be a time of change for the couple, and Lucy in particular has been through a lot of upheaval.”
Ryan and Lucy first met on The Island with in 2017 and their romance unfolded onscreen.
Two years later, Ryan proposed while they were on holiday in.
They had their son, Roman, in March 2020 and then their daughter Lilah in May 2022, so the wedding was understandably put on the back burner.
Speaking in September Lucy addressed their lack of nuptials, telling magazine: “I think our priorities changed on because it’s a big thing. It’s a lot of.
“We’ve got kids, we’ve got responsibilities now. So if there’s been that money in the pot, it’s gone on a house extension or a family holiday.”
She reeled off a long list of things that were holding them back, adding: “But maybe after my sister’s wedding we can try to do it – as long as we don’t move house again!”
In the meantime, Lucy is busy learning to live with Ryan constantly oversharing details about their relationship on his podcast – and now others.
Last week, Ryan and his brothers appeared on Chloe vs The World, and were quizzed by about what would be their perfect day.
Without thinking twice, he said: “You know what I find I’m really happy with? It sounds really crazy – I like when Lucy’s not there and the kids as well.
“I’ve had my house on my own for 24 hours and I was like, ‘Oh my god, this house is like so different.’
“She’s been away for a little bit more than 24 hours and I’ve been allowed to have the lads around, staying over having a few drinks. I said to my lads, imagine having this gaff to myself, the parties here. I really enjoy that.”
Listeners were gobsmacked and were quick to criticise him.
One person commented: “I would DIEEEE if my man said this publicly.”
A second added: “No seriously – I would be devastated if my partner spoke about me this way. I would genuinely get a divorce.”
And a third asked: “Why on earth would you say that?”
He raised eyebrows just a few weeks before on his podcast At Home With the Thomas Bros, when he admitted that not only does he no longer sleep in the same room as Lucy, but they also have separate living rooms.
His brother , 38, was shocked and didn’t hold back in sharing his feelings, telling him: “Which I think is f***ed up personally as well. You need to stay in the same bed as her.”
Ryan continued in a jovial manner: “Two living rooms. We watch telly separately. We don’t really like each other… I try and spend as little time with Lucy as possible.
“She likes to watch these American TV series and I like to watch crime.”
He didn’t stop there though – he then told how once he was “feeling a little frisky” and tried to instigate sex in Lucy’s living room.
“I stand over her growling like a little puppy dog. I started stroking her and she just looked at me like, ‘What are you doing?’”
“She’s like, ‘Ryan can you at least sit in the same room as me and watch a series with me’. I’m like, ‘I don’t really want to watch the series with you, you know exactly what I want and I’m here’.”
He added jokingly: “We don’t sit in the same room together. We only had sex twice and got two kids.”
Lucy has been surprisingly gung-ho about it all and admitted: “We definitely have that conversation sometimes because I can see his little brain ticking away.
“I’m like, ‘You’re making mental notes for the podcast. That’s absolutely not going on there!’ But me and Caroline (Adam’s wife) always laugh saying, ‘We’re better off just not listening to it.’ But sometimes you can’t get away from the clips because their social team is so good, they are everywhere.”
She added: “I think all the boys kind of know their boundaries. They do overshare but most of the time it’s really light-hearted and fun.
“I think the point of their podcast is just to make everyone smile because they have really good fun and they’re just trying to be themselves.”
While Lucy might be happy to laugh off Ryan’s filter-free podcast confessions as harmless fun, there is no doubt it has raised eyebrows.
And fans will be watching to see whether their next move finally brings the wedding bells Lucy is waiting for – or just more material for Ryan’s next episode.
