Anthea Turner has revealed why she still hasn’t married her millionaire fiancé, as she reflected on her infamous ‘Flake Gate’ wedding during an appearance on Vanessa Feltz‘s Channel 5 show on Friday.

The  TV presenter, 65, got engaged to businessman Mark Armstrong in September 2019 after a whirlwind two-month romance, but said she now prefers the idea of a smaller ceremony as big ‘flash’ weddings are falling out of fashion.

Anthea was previously married to property developer Grant Bovey, 64, in a lavish 2000 ceremony that sparked backlash after the couple posed while eating Cadbury‘s Snowflake bars in a promotional tie-in.

During a discussion about whether expensive weddings are worth it, she reflected on the extravagant day.

She said: ‘It was so extravagant, really when I think back now, I do remember thinking “this is not me, I don’t really want it to be so big, this was nowhere near what I wanted.”

‘But I sort of got bamboozled into the whole thing, and it got bigger and bigger and bigger, and then of course, a chocolate bar was stuffed in my face, and then that was the end of everything.

Anthea Turner has revealed why she still hasn’t married her millionaire fiancé, as she reflected on her infamous ‘Flake Gate’ wedding during an appearance on Vanessa Feltz’s Channel 5 show on Friday

The TV presenter, 65, got engaged to businessman Mark Armstrong in September 2019 after a whirlwind two-month romance, but said she now prefers the idea of a smaller ceremony as big ‘flash’ weddings are falling out of fashion

‘But I also think the tanker has turned around with these big flash weddings that we don’t think “oh how amazing now”, it’s like when people have big flash cars, it’s like, people with flashiness is actually going out.’

It comes after Anthea sweetly gushed that she’s been ‘given a second chance at love’ with her fiancé after two failed marriages and revealed she’s a grandmother after her stepdaughter welcomed a baby.

She was previously married to Radio 1 DJ Peter Powell, who she left in 1998 for property developer Grant Bovey. Anthea went on to be with Grant and they were married for 15 years from 2000 to 2015.

In a previous interview, Anthea said that her and Mark are planning on tying the knot next year and that she still feels positive about marriage.

Speaking about her upcoming wedding, she said: ‘I’m a woman who got a second chance at love and family life and I’m loving it.’

Asked if a relationship in your 60s is more about companionship rather than fireworks she disagreed, telling the publication: ‘Oh God, no, that’s not how it works for me.’

She went on to tell The Sunday Times: ‘Desire fades a bit in menopause but it doesn’t stay like that. I’m a fully paid-up member of the HRT club and there’s nothing like a nice new relationship for igniting everything again.’

She remains close with her ex Grant’s children and in the interview revealed that his daughter Claudia recently had her first child as she gushed: ‘I’m Granny Anth! I couldn’t be happier.’

Anthea was previously married to property developer Grant Bovey, 64, in a lavish 2000 ceremony that sparked backlash after the couple posed while eating Cadbury’s Snowflake bars in a promotional tie-in (seen with Grant in 2004)

During a discussion about whether expensive weddings are worth it, she reflected on the extravagant day

She said: ‘It was so extravagant, really when I think back now, I do remember thinking “this is not me, I don’t really want it to be so big, this was nowhere near what i wanted,”

She added: ‘But I sort of got bamboozled into the whole thing, and it got bigger and bigger and bigger, and then of course, a chocolate bar was stuffed in my face, and then that was the end of everything,’

Anthea recently opened up on being labelled a ‘homewrecker’ after falling for Grant.

She left Peter in 1998 for Grant – who at the time was married with three young children.

Grant, a friend of Peter, left his wife Della and their daughters, then aged two, four, and seven.

While the saga played out like a real-life soap opera for the public, for those involved, it was a deeply painful experience.

She was branded a homewrecker – and reflected on that chapter of her life in an interview in October.

Anthea told the Telegraph: ‘I owned up to it, because when people split up and say, ‘There’s nobody else involved’, you know damn well there is.

‘I asked a solicitor friend to put out a statement because otherwise they were going to go poking around and something was going to get found out.

‘I look back on it all now, it was a series of unfortunate events.’

It comes after Anthea sweetly gushed that she’s been ‘given a second chance at love’ with her fiancé after two failed marriages and revealed she’s a grandmother after her stepdaughter welcomed a baby (Anthea and Mark pictured 2023)

Gift baskets

Anthea went on to be with Grant and they were married for 15 years.

They first split in 2012 and briefly reconciled before separating for good in 2013, and were divorced in 2015 on the grounds of his adultery.

The marriage ended after she discovered that Grant, then 52, was having an affair with interior designer Zoe de Mallet Morgan.

Her discovery came less than a year after she had forgiven him for an indiscretion with another woman.