Joe Swash thanks wife Stacey Solomon for ‘saving him’ during bitter custody battle

In a touching new interview, Joe Swash has thanked his wife Stacey Solomon for ‘saving him’.

The TV golden couple met back in 2010, after their wins on I am Celeb with them being crowned king and queen of the Jungle on their respective seasons.

Over a decade later, Swash has revealed the singer-turned-presenter still rules his heart after helping through a bitter custody battle.

Instagram/Stacey Solomon

At the time, the Cockney actor had been separating from his former fiancé, Emma Sophocleous.

The legal dispute dragged in for three years, meaning that Swash was unable to see his young son Harry for months at a time – leaving the Eastenders star in pieces.

Sliding into a deep depression, the now-40-year-old admitted that he struggled to stay afloat when the cameras were off and says that he was a ‘mess’.

“I’d shut myself in my flat and not talk to anyone,” he told Fabulous Magazine, adding: “I wouldn’t answer the phone, even though I knew my mum was really anxious about me.”

Unable to see his son, the actor and presenter also feared that he wouldn’t be reunited with his son having lost his own dad at 11 to an undiagnosed heart condition.

It meant his every waking moment was consumed with worry about him not being the ‘dad he wanted to be’, adding: “I’d always wanted a family and I thought: ‘I’m never going to have that’. It made me think about my dad.”

Thankfully, he met his future wife, Stacey, whilst hosting an episode of I am Celeb spin-off, Extra Camp.

Turns out the couple had way more in common than just their jungle crowns, and have been inseparable ever since – with the former singer helping Swash with his mental health.

Instagram/Stacey Solomon

Reflecting on his relationship, Swash gushed: “I truly believe Stacey was an angel sent to me by my dad to bring me out of real darkness in my life.”

He added: “If I hadn’t met her, everything would have been very different. I don’t know what would have happened to me.”

The couple seems to be happier than ever, having finally married last year and sharing a beautiful blended family – made from their kids and their children from previous relationships.

Not only that, but they are planning to grow their family in the coming years, with Joe making the admission on Loose Women this week.

"We've seen the benefits from my family and what it does and we've said if we are physically capable of doing it and we love kids, that once our kids have flown the nest and we can get rid of them, yeah, we'll definitely think about [it],” he gushed.

We’re glad the actor got his happy-ever-after in the end.