Footballers’ Wives star Laila Rouass has revealed she thought beau Ronnie O’Sullivan wasn’t ‘stepdad material’ at first.
The 49-year-old actresses success on the noughties drama led to her bagging a role in BBC’s Holby City and she became a firm favourite among fans as the iconic Sahira Shah.
Laila left the show in 2012, a year after joining, but returned to the medical drama earlier this month.
The actress had struggled to juggle her acting schedule with being a single mother to her four-year-old daughter Inez.
In an interview with The Mirror, Laila has credited her comeback in part to her beau Ronnie O’Sullivan, who she at first doubted would be “step-dad material”.
Laila Rouass shot to fame after starring in noughties drama Footballers’ Wives (Image: BBC)
She met the six-time world champion in 2012 and admitted bringing two families together has not been easy.
Ronnie, 45, is stepdad to her daughter Inez, now 13, and has three children of his own, Taylor-Ann, 24, Lily, 14 and Ronnie, 13.
Television star Laila told the publication: “It’s a lie if people tell you that blended families are easy.
The actress met six-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan in 2012 (Image: Getty Images)
“He’s struggled with it, I’ve struggled with it and Inez has struggled with it. It takes hard work and you have to be honest with yourself and each other.”
She continued: “That’s what we’ve had to do over the last nine years. We’ve had to work through things and now it’s much smoother.
Laila said: “Initially I thought: ‘This guy is not step-dad material.’ He’s a fantastic dad to his kids, but he was struggling with his own relationship with his family.
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The TV star recently recently returned to BBC medical drama Holby City (Image: BBC)
“I thought he had too much on his plate, but now he and Inez have got the best relationship.”
Laila played glamorous bisexual Amber Gates on Footballers’ Wives and her character’s baby was swapped at birth by a midwife who had been bribed by her rival.
Her character also found out her husband Conrad had been cheating on her after finding the letter T scratched on to his buttocks and faked her own kidnap in an act of revenge.
The actress has said she believes the show was ahead of its time, as she explained: “Some people said it was outrageous, but when you read now what footballers have been up to, you realise that we were tame. My cat fights? Look at Rebecca Vardy and Coleen Rooney!”
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
