[steve_o]

Bad news, but at least there very honest about it, that's what I always liked about Helen and Paul good luck to them both. Who knows time apart might be a good thing, the pressure must have been bad for both of them. Bonzobaby come on, give people who liked em a break, your entitled to your opion you've had your gloat, but gloating about it over and over again looks more sad than the actual split.

[discoshag]

Am I missing something?

Are all of you people personal friends/family of Helen and Paul, and directly involved in their lives? I'd have thought that unless you were family, bonzobaby's opinion that his fave HM, Helen, has been saved from a "limiting"relationship should be irrelevant to you.

Strange goings on.

[rachb]

oooh I didn't realise you two were still together
thought wherever Bonzo goes you follow though
welcome back
I'm sure we don't even need to answer that one do we

[discoshag]

Hi
Sorry, Rach - I think you may have mistaken me for someone else... I'm not *with* bonzobaby in any sense! I haven't been here for a long time, but I'm not sure that I know you.

Thanks for the welcome, though.

[steve_o]

Your dead right discoshag his opion is irrelevant never thought of it like that Waste of bandwidth really

[discoshag]

lol, I'm glad I helped you to see things more clearly steve.

Though, with respect, I don't share your opinion.

[bananarama]

I too am gutted to hear the news of their split. They seemed so suited. A sad end to the BB2 saga.

[Di2001]

Was sad to read the article in The Sun yesterday while trying to eat my breakfast at the same time.

Thanks for posting up the Heat article James. Such a shame

Going to be interesting to see what ROB has to say about it all.......

[Di2001]

The Look of Love...........

[rachb]

Oh Di that pic
How could it have all gone so wrong for them

[babyangel]

aw i think its a shame really its s shame when anyone split casue they obviously loved each other at one point, lets hope they work it out, and best of luck to them!

[lyndy]

it is so sad to read this on tele text . then read it in heat mag. my heart goes out to both of them .

[BB-Rocks]

I never watched BB2 but they seemed great together

[BusyBee]

CC - I think the idea of a last pay day from heat was the last thing on their mind. They have always used Heat to make announcements - remember they had their first interview the money for which they gave to charity.

A day after I am still in denial. If I dont read anything or see the article in Heat then it hasnt happened!

I think there were lots of reasons for the break-up. And they do say that they sold the flat because they were thinking of buying a house together.

Still good thing is that Helen is moving to Bristol. Good choice that. I shall be keeping my beady little eye out for her while I am out doing retail therapy.

I do hope all the interest that we have always shown in them hasnt contributed to all this. Paul has always said he wanted a private life and it must have been difficult to have people coming up to you and talking as if they had been best friends with you for ever.

Perhaps becoming 30 has made Paul sit back and think what he really wants from life. It is such a shame because they both gave up an awful lot to be together and went through a lot.

I just hope the media give them some privacy and dont keep trying to get interviews. They need time to themselves to come to terms with things.

Oh dear I'm off again where's the tissues.

[cc100]

On reflection, I think my negative comments towards Helen were just made in a state of shock- I really dont have any bad feelings towards Helen (or Paul for that matter). I still think shes one of the loveliest people to ever grace television. I genuinely wish her and Paul every happiness.

I feel stupid to have written the things I did. Sorry Helen!

Its just a huge surprise and Im genuinely saddened to hear it, mainly because its so unexpected. I really cant be bothered with Big Brother anymore. H/P were the reason I came looking for a BB forum, to talk about them and how lovely they are/were together. I just dont know if Ill be bothered with coming back regularly to post anymore.

I guess what brought them together, eventually tore them apart. Im sure they never made the decision lightly, but I hope they know what they are doing because true love only happens once in your life.

It amazes me how Paul could let a girl like Helen go. He must be mad! I suppose I always had this scenario in the back of my mind, because if everything was as great as we all thought, then surely they would have got married or at least engaged long before their fifth anninversary? Im sure Paul (or even Helen) would have proposed if they were sure they were for keeps.

I suppose that at the start of their relationship, Helen was reliant and dependant on Paul and she has obviously matured and changed, proven by the fact that shes moving to Bristol on her own. I couldnt imagine her doing that a few years back. So maybe thats the reason for the split- shes just doesent need him anymore? Or maybe she wanted to move to Bristol and Paul didnt?

I guess in a few months or so, we'll see a couple of 'Paul:My new love' or 'Helen: My new fella' stories in heat. It is hard to imagine, but I hope they get the happiness they deserve. Its hard to imagine them staying friends- it just doesent work like that, and especially with Helen moving to Bristol, its hard to believe they'll stay 'good friends' although Im sure they speak on the phone. But if they get into new realtionahips, which Im sure they will, then will the new partner want an ex hanging around? Doubt it.

Theres no hint of unhappiness here in this interview in April: http://www.thisisbigbrother.com/foru....php?tid=41548

As for them getting back together- sadly I think this is the end for good.

I could write a five page essay here, but Ill leave it at that now, because it gets me down thinking about it.

If they cant make it- then what hope for the rest of us?


More coverage:
Mirror
ITV News

Sky


Remember this? : BBC News
and : Internet forum

[Romantic Old Bird]

I have only just heard about this.

Obviously, I'm gutted, devastated, whatever.

I think they waited too long really.

Love becomes friendship - if you are lucky.

Who knows, maybe they will realise they can't live without each other.

Still it is their life, and I am over the obsession I had for ages with them, but I still love them both, and will always remember 2001 with great fondness.

Bonzo my friend, glad you are well - just sad you felt the need to gloat and cast dispersions.

Paul didn't lie - the guy was and is honest.

Be nice

Good luck to Paul and Helen

[Sticks]

I know this will sound crass, but as I will be updating one of my websites with a wrench, will a number of those with Helen and Paul banners be changing them now along with the various related avatars?

[cc100]

Ill keep my avator and banner as they arent really specific to to their relationship.

Well said ROB, its their life and you have to respect that and wish them well even though it is sad. But what do you mean by saying 'they waited too long'?

[rachb]

I have the view that they waited too long aswell CC.
In my opinion when you've been in a relationship for so long things do change.It's not the same as at the start but that doesn;'t mean it's bad.I think it is more like a friendship or companionship at least.
I think if they'd married then perhaps they would have giiven it a better chance but who knows how they'd been feeling really.We only have their interviews to go from.
As for my avatar and signature as much as it's sad to see I'm leaving them for now as it makes me sad to think about changing them

[Romantic Old Bird]

Originally posted by cc100
Ill keep my avator and banner as they arent really specific to to their relationship.

Well said ROB, its their life and you have to respect that and wish them well even though it is sad. But what do you mean by saying 'they waited too long'?

I mean, every relationship has it's rocky periods. They stayed single too long. Each waiting for the other to take the final step - in the end when the first flush wears off, you either weather the storm, and find a new place to put them in your heart, or you just throw in the towel.

If they had married after a couple of years they would probably built even more irreversible bridges and ties.

I married OH a few months after marrying him. The odds, and his parents were against us, and it hurried us into a probably foolhardy early commitment to each other.

I hardly noticed my relationship with OH throughout our early years. Too busy bringing up two gorgeous little boys, developing a career, and looking after my mum when she had finished looking after us as a family.

Then my boys left home for Uni, and my mum died, and I looked at OH and couldn't find the bloke I married. He never changed his feelings for me. We had a few rough spells throughout, although there was never anyone else.

If I hadn't had the boys, maybe we would have gone our seperate ways after 5 years.

Now he is my best friend, my only real soul-mate..

I just fear H&P are making the mistake that many do. The first passionate flush isn't really a long-lasting thing.

What you develop into is a warm, kind and tender affection for each other. You think and say the same sort of things, you share so much and so many memories.

The most enduring thing in a successful relationship is really LIKING someone very much, and having a wonderful, intimate friend.

I still think they have that you know.

[cc100]

Good points and I agree with it.

Im only 24 but I can see that the honeymoon period is only temporary for 95% of couples. Ive been with my lass for 16 months and we are still in that first flush of love/lust where your heart genuinely skips a beat when you hear them on the phone or see them coming through the front door. I know it wont last forever, but I really feel we are good friends and I think true friendship can last. Thats what I thought H & P had- Paul was always making the point that she is/was his best mate. So maybe they are making that mistake as you point out ROB, and maybe they will realise that they need each other, but..........people do change and if you read Helens early interviews and compare them to her recent interview in this section that I linked to, you can see she is more mature and maybe they just didnt want the same thing anymore.

I always did think that they might not make it, even though I didnt say so on here because once it went past 2 or 3 years, the chances of them getting married did seem to diminish.

Saying all that, it is very sad but, maybe we should be happy for them that they had a good time together and shared a lot of experiences.

Lets hope they can find happiness elsewhere and remain friends.

[cc100]

I tell you what though- its great that they have been amicable to each other and that they havent done separate interviews where they slate each other and spill the beans about their private time together. Maybe they really will stay friends?

[rachb]

I never doubted they would get married even after so many years though.I didn't get married until we'd been together for 12 years as we were very young when we met although we never lived together before and so I think that makes a difference.I think living with someone you really get to know them and probably after the first couple of years know if it's going to last.
That's why I was shocked I thought perhaps it was that people were asking them all the time and they were just going against the pressure other people were putting on them to do it.
I don't think marriage and children would put things right but the excitement of getting married and then later having children would have taken things to another level I think.
I'm not saying though that it would put problems right and nobody should do it for that but if it's just a case of wanting to move foward it would have been one solution.I know they have to do what is right for them but I just hope that they don't expect any relationship to be different after such a long time as they may never find that happens.I always thought the fact that he called her his best friend would mean it would last as after the first few years and excitement were over that would have been the right ingredient for growing old together.
I'd have felt better if she was staying close though as they'd have had more contact I'm sure.

[James]

From reading the interview it seems they split for practical reasons like where they wanted to live, and the fact that people still recognise them, rather than not being able to get on with each other well enough any more.

It's a shame that, because it looks like their relationship was eventually ended because they met initially on Big Brother - if they had met up normally there wouldn't be the possibility for Helen to do the media work that Paul might think makes it more difficult for him to be a private person. It's understandable that Paul wouldn't want to harm his career, and it is also understandable that Helen would like the idea of a TV career.

In retrospect Helen being a hairdresser from Wales who was given celebrity opportunities because of a reality TV show and Paul having a professional design career was going to push them in different directions, I think.

Also if they hadn't met on Big Brother people wouldn't still know who they are... I'm sure that is really a big reason for this breakup because you only have to put yourself in their shoes to understand how strange it is for other people to know about you while you know nothing about them. Some celebrity-type couples obviously love this attention, and that is why they constantly sell details of their lives to magazines, but most ordinary people dislike it immensely and Paul, in particular, obviously wants to stay private.

That is one of the reasons I liked Paul in Big Brother - he had a good career (in a technical area that is interesting to me) and looked like he was happy to go back to that after the show finished.

Of course it would have been impossible for Helen and Paul to meet, and get to know each other, had they not been on BB together given their differing backgrounds.

From watching how they were together on Big Brother - and admittedly that was five years ago - I thought they were made for each other. Even if the initial feelings had faded to friendship and companionship I don't think that they would just split up because of that alone - and given away the relationship they still had - without the practical problems.

I'm not sure that getting married would have made a difference to them staying together, though having children obviously would have if that had come about. But from what Helen said in interviews she didn't want children in the near future.

Again this opinion is based on only the interviews they have given from time to time (which wasn't that often).

[bonzobaby]

Originally posted by Sticks
I know this will sound crass, but as I will be updating one of my websites with a wrench, will a number of those with Helen and Paul banners be changing them now along with the various related avatars?

I realise it must be a big wrench, so hopefully these will help