Former EastEnders star Rita Simons has announced her engagement to Ben Harlow.
In a post on Instagram, the actress shared two images of her and her new fiancé beaming as she showed off her ring. She captioned the post: “…so this happened!” alongside two ring emojis.
The 47-year-old, who now stars as Marie Fielding in Hollyoaks after playing Roxy Mitchell in Eastenders for 10 years, met partner Ben while performing in Legally Blonde the Musical in 2017. She has been in a relationship with the former actor, who is now a podcast host, since 2020.
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Rita’s friends and fans flooded the announcement post with messages of congratulations. Samantha Womack, who played Rita’s on-screen sister in the BBC soap, commented: “Wooooooooooop!!!!!”
Blue star-turned-actor Duncan James wrote: “Love u so much! Congrats to the both of u! J’adore!!” Soap star Hayley Tamaddon said: “Whaaaaaat?!?!? Ahhh this has made me so happy! Congratulations you two beautiful humans.”
Former Hollyoaks star Steph Waring commented: “Congratulations to you both!”, while Nadine Mulkerrin, who plays Cleo McQueen in the Channel 4 soap, said: “Awww the loveliest couple, congratulations guys xxx”
Rita previously opened up about her relationship with Ben on the ITV reality show Drama Queens. Rita and Ben moved into a new home together last year after relocating to Liverpool.
Rita Simons as Roxy Mitchell in Eastenders -Credit:BBC
She revealed they were friends for several years before dating. “We were mates and then a couple of years later he asked me out on a date,” she said. “And we’ve been together ever since.”
Rita had a hysterectomy in early 2023 after suffering with debilitating and irregular periods, which worsened her OCD and anxiety. Explaining her reasons for the hysterectomy, she previously shared: “It was the best thing I ever did. I’d never change it… It’s the best for my state of mind.
“A lot of my issues were hormone driven. I had the hysterectomy because of stress. It was causing me so much anxiety. And that mental load has gone.”
Rita was previously married to hairdresser Theo Silveston, who she shares twin daughters with. They separated in 2018 after 14 years of marriage.