Kirsty Gallacher and Paul Sampson didn't want their divorce to be a war.

Although the couple initially had an acrimonious split in 2014, they both eventually decided to put their differences aside for the sake of their two sons, Jude and Oscar.

Former rugby star Paul told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: ''I was struggling with retirement and losing my old man, and then I faced a big divorce after that. It was one of those things. It wasn't working out.

''Often when people decide to go their separate ways, as soon as the divorce starts, it turns into a war.

''But we were really civil from the off. Well, not from the off, that's a lie.''

And Paul revealed their buried the hatchet after toasting the divorce from opposite ends of a champagne bar.

He explained: ''It was all a bit surreal, to be honest.

''After about an hour I thought, 'Well, I'm not going to let her leave without saying something'. So I went over and said, 'Are you OK?'

''She got quite annoyed but I said, 'Look, this doesn't have to be a war.'''

Paul, 42, and TV presenter Kirsty, 44, had been together for 15 years and married for four before their split and he said that they were both at fault for the breakdown of the relationship.

He explained: ''We both had our issues. I was anxious about certain things and she was anxious about others. We all want to be good partners but sometimes your best isn't good enough.''