I’m a lot less well off, but I don’t feel bitterness at all.I don’t regret the fact that we got divorced. We had several good years and I have three terrific kids, who I’m trying not to mess up. If either of us thought the other was being unreasonable, we kept quiet It just wasn’t worth getting embroiled. We sold the house and set Jane and the kids up in a cheaper place I got a rather crummy flat. I still pay for Jane’s mortgage and maintenance on top of that.

They would be living with their Mum, which, because the three of them were so young at the time, was the obvious decision. They were confused, but Jodie’s behaviour improved once we started letting her know what was going on.Jane and I made a pact not to even start thinking about other relationships until we’d sorted the whole thing out It took just a few months to organise things There was no contention. We talked all night about what had happened to us and at the end we had decided that was it. Some people might say we should have struggled on, but we realised that everybody would be happier apart and, while it might be disruptive initially, the kids would be better off in the long run.We went for irreconcilable differences Our solicitor was very supportive.

I actually lost interest in sex until I realised that it was just sex with my wife that I wasn’t interested in.We knew we had to get a divorce when Jodie, our eldest girl, was behaving badly at school Her teacher asked if there were problems at home. When the decision had been made it was such a relief that the atmosphere in the house actually cheered up a lot.We tried to keep the kids informed, that Mum and Dad would be living in different places but that they would still see both of us. We went back home and had a proper talk about the situation – the first time we had confronted our problems. My parents divorced when I was eight and it affected my confidence very badly. I didn’t want any child of mine to go through that.Why did the marriage break down? It’s hard to pin it down to any one thing, we just grew apart It just became obvious that we had more fun separately. We both found excuses to avoid spending time alone together, we bickered all the time, we stopped laughing and our physical relationship deteriorated.

They were married for eight years and have three children, aged nine, eight and six.MICHAEL: When it was obvious that the marriage wouldn’t work, what we were determined to do was make sure the kids didn’t come out of it too badly. As for the holiday in France (not Italy), my girlfriend paid for it Maggie won’t let me see the kids anyway. I don’t feel I can force it when I haven’t got the money for the maintenance and I know that she does her best to tell the kids what a bastard I am.they grew apart and wanted to do the best for the childrenCASE THREE: MICHAEL AND JANEMichael, 35, a publisher, and Jane, 32, a veterinary nurse, divorced a year ago. I don’t see the point in blame, I think it’s best just to work it out Maggie won custody, which I was fine with.