Singer Ian ‘H’ Watkins from Steps, who is currently competing on Celebrity MasterChef, has remained in the limelight due to the success of his group and stories about his former partner.
The Tragedy hitmaker came out publicly as gay in 2007 when preparing to enter the Celebrity Big Brother house. However, his relationships with men began behind the scenes years before.
H from Steps partner: Ian dated manager Tim Byrne
In the late 1990s, former Dancing On Ice contestant H began dating Tim Byrne, the man who founded and managed Steps.
During the group’s Sky Living documentary, Steps Reunion, in 2011, H admitted the pair managed to keep their relationship “quiet” for two to three years.
“It was nobody’s business and we didn’t want it to affect our working relationship with anybody,” he explained.
After keeping it secret for so long, he told fellow Steps member Claire Richards, who he hoped would keep it to herself. However, the One For Sorrow singer spilled the beans to the other three members – Faye Tozer, Lisa Scott-Lee, and Lee Latchford-Evans. As a result, he ended up “hating” her.
In the documentary, Claire defended herself, stating: “It wasn’t like out of spite just told them. They asked me and I just didn’t say no anymore.”
The relationship caused a divide within the group. Faye expressed: “You can’t choose who you love, why did it have to be our manager?”
Lisa admitted she felt “betrayed” and “let down” by the secrecy and believed it was “unprofessional”.
H and Tim’s relationship reportedly lasted 10 years and came to an end around 2007, per Stourbridge News.
H started a family with actor Craig Ryder
Shortly after publicly coming out in 2007, H started dating actor Craig Ryder.
In 2016, they decided to take their relationship to the next level and welcomed twin sons – Macsen and Cybi – via surrogacy. However, one year later, they announced they had split.
Things started to get ugly quite quickly. H took legal action against his ex over his Range Rover, claiming he had lent him £15,000 to buy the car. In the middle of a legal dispute, Craig insisted the money was a gift. Craig branded H a “financial bully” who had “deleted” him out of his life.
“I would never take a loan. We had been together for many years and we have children together,” he told Judge Edward Bailey at the City of London County Court.
ED! has contacted H’s reps for comment.
H said single parenting is ‘tough’
During an interview with Sky News in 2021, H opened up about being a single dad to twins.
“I have been a single parent virtually from the beginning, I guess, so I know exactly what it’s like to be outnumbered if you are a single parent out there,” he said. “It’s tough… There is no traditional family unit anymore. Families come in all shapes and sizes.
“When it comes to single-parent families, I’m outnumbered, completely. So I have to divide my time and I have to devote attention to what’s needed. I am a little bit of a, well, 90%, I’d say, I’m bad cop because I have to be, you know, I do rule my children with discipline, but I also put the fun dad hat on as well. So it’s a juggling act, really. And it’s tough.”
H ‘smitten’ with dancer Tom Hope
Three years after splitting from Craig, H found love in dancer-turned-tour-manager Tom Hope.
“H is smitten and it’s lovely for everyone to see. He had been single for almost three years and was totally focused on his twin boys and his work,” a source told The Sun in 2020.
“Then Dancing On Ice earlier this year was hectic for him, too. But now he’s met Tom it feels like everything has fallen into place.”
While reports revealed H and Tom split after three months, it appears the pair are back in a relationship.
In June, H and Tom attended Cowbridge Pride and shared a photo on Instagram of them kissing
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