TV PRESENTER’S WIFE PUTS Flight to US as Ant tries for a speedy painless divorce
I feel for Lisa. She is the loveliest person in the world
ANT Mcpartlin’s estranged wife Lisa Armstrong has flown thousands of miles to try to put her marital troubles out of mind.
The Strictly make-up artist, 41, travelled alone to Los Angeles but remained tightlipped about Ant’s “betrayal” after the 11-hour flight.
When asked about his new romance with her former friend and PA, Anne-marie Corbett, Lisa, still wearing a ring on her wedding finger, smiled and said she was “on vacation” in LA.
Lisa who is planning to divorce the ITV star looked stressed as she smoked and carried a Louis Vuitton handbag.
But she is believed to be visiting her closest friends for comfort and looked poised to spend several days in the US.
A chauffeur loaded her three suitcases into a car and drove her to an exclusive part of West Hollywood.
She is believed to be staying in a multimillion dollar private house.
An onlooker at LAX airport said: “Lisa came through arrivals just like any other passenger. But she looked like a celeb in her sunglasses and having a chauffeur meet you means you get the star treatment too.
“It was a surprise to see her there on her own but friends are due to help keep her spirits up. Hopefully she has a good time and puts all the dramas behind her, at least for a short time.”
Her arrival in the US came as Ant reportedly offered her their sprawling West London mansion, to try to come to a divorce agreement as quickly as possible.
The host, 42, is said to want to settle their split “quickly and painlessly”, following the emergence of his romance with mum-of-two Anne-marie, who is separated from her husband.
Lisa is said to have felt heartbroken and betrayed by Ant’s new relationship with Anne-marie, a close pal and colleague of Ali Donnelly, the wife of Ant’s TV partner Dec.
In September Ant was seen in LA trying to escape the spotlight after rehab for his battle with prescription drugs.
Ant returned to rehab after drinkdriving and crashing his car in London in March. He was fined £86,000 and banned for 20 months in April.
Pals say doctors will decide when the Saturday Night Takeaway host returns to work with Dec.
Some friends fear Ant has moved on too quickly and his new romance will add to the strain of his recovery. One said: “We just hope it doesn’t make the situation worse for him. He has been under a lot of scrutiny.
“We think he needs time on his own before a new relationship.”
Lisa’s close friend and ex-strictly star Robin Windsor, 38, said: “I feel for her. She’s the loveliest person in the world.
“Just like anything in life she will fight her way through. She’s really strong.”
Robin said Strictly dancers and bosses had rallied for her.
Ant and Lisa, who wed in 2006, met on a pop tour in 1994. He was half of duo PJ and Duncan, she was in Deuce.