Sports star James Haskell is known for his professional rugby union career before splitting from Chloe Madeley two years ago
Former rugby union ace James Haskell admits he has a “mad body transformation” since splitting from Chloe Madeley, dubbing it a “midlife glow-up”. He reveals he has lost weight to get ripped and had a hair and teeth makeover too.
James, 40, says: “People have used the words ‘midlife crisis’ or ‘a cry for help’ – I say ‘midlife glow-up’. “And it’s gone down extremely well ‘across the board’. I have never had more heat in my life, if you get my drift. It’s harder to go home on my own at the moment!
“I joke, of course. I am not that kind of guy – but if I was then it would almost be unfair.” James lifts the lid on single life, two years on from his marriage breakdown, in new book Reloaded – The Good, The Bad & The Rugby, a spin-off from the podcast he hosts with Mike Tindall and Alex Payne.
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The ex-England flanker, who won 77 caps for his country, says: “A lot has gone on since the last book we wrote, including me turning 40. I celebrated with a mad week in Ibiza, which was like a cross between The Hangover and the last days of Rome.
“Some people broke so hard that they felt the need to leave early. I’d wake up and see a note next to my bed – ‘Sorry can’t do this any more’.
“Turning 40 wasn’t at all depressing, it was non-stop laughter, exactly what I wanted. “Physically, I’m a strange mismatch between outwardly looking half-decent and crumbling underneath.
“I’ve had a bit of a mid-life glow-up … and I reckon I might even be a six out of 10.” He shed nearly three stone, going from 19st 5lb to 16st 12lb, after linking up with Roar Fitness, run by former British speed skater Sarah Lindsay.
James says: “I loved the torture of doing it, and it was the best shape I’d ever been in. I was absolutely shredded and looked almost like a bodybuilder, minus the severe bronze lacquer. I mean, I did get tanned – just not that insane tan they all get.” When he is not working – and not enjoying time with his and Chloe’s daughter, Bodhi, three – he ends “up wasting an enormous amount of time and money dating”.
He says: “I’ve never really been a fan of dating apps. I much prefer meeting people in person. There’s an art to chatting someone up, that mix of charm, nerves and risk.
“I actually enjoy the jeopardy of it: that little thrill of not knowing whether they’ll say yes, no, or completely shut you down.” Women, he says, “don’t quite realise just how nerve-racking it is”.
He goes on: “Most women never hit on men, so they’ll never know the feeling of walking up to a group, heart pounding, trying to deliver a line that isn’t terrible. Sometimes it lands, sometimes it crashes and burns and either way, it takes guts.”
James says he did try to get on to the so-called “celebrity” dating app Raya – but failed. He reveals: “After 97 referrals, I still couldn’t get in. I’ve no idea what I did wrong, but perhaps they’re simply excellent judges of character. It’s probably for the best that they’ve kept me out.
“The problem is, most of the time I date just to have something to do, and it can be quite soul-destroying.” Although the star says he has no intention of settling down with anybody any time soon.
He says: “I’ve pretty much conceded that my life needs to be slightly chaotic. But what that chaos will look like over the next few years is difficult to say.”
In 2023, he and Chloe – daughter of TV stars Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan – announced their separation in a joint statement. They wed in 2018.
In his new book, James confesses crushing rugby injuries make it hard to keep up with his little girl. He says: “I struggle just to walk properly. I used to have good days and bad days, but now it’s just bad days. I’m due to have an operation… I can’t pick Bodhi up sometimes.”
And he has said of the new book: “It’s a rollercoaster of emotion, fun, stories you have never heard. “Me, my world ’s falling apart but I am still smiling.”
