Bury-born former Emmerdale actress Charley Webb and Matthew Wolfenden have confirmed they are splitting up after five years of marriage.

There had been some speculation on the split since Wolfenden was discovered to have unfollowed Webb on Instagram earlier in the month.

Rumours had been circling for weeks about their relationship amid Matthew quitting the ITV soap for the West End Elf the Musical, according to The Mirror.

While Charley, 35, who played Debbie Dingle for more than a decade, has been making her theatre debut on the UK tour of Quiz the Play, telling the story of the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire coughing scandal.

Announcing the split in an Instagram post on Wednesday, November 22, Charley confirmed her and Matthew’s separation, writing: “It is with love and respect that Matthew and I have decided to separate.”

"We remain friends and our priority is the love for our children. For their sake we would appreciate privacy at this time. C x.”

Wolfenden, who played David Metcalfe on Emmerdale, shared the same message, signed off with “M,” on his Instagram story.

After meeting on the Emmerdale set, the couple began dating in 2007 before revealing they were expecting their first child, Buster in 2009. They then went on to have two more sons, Bowie and Ace.

The couple announced their engagement in 2009 after a couple of years of dating, before they split for two years in 2013.

After that, they surprised fans by throwing an unexpected wedding in 2018.

Wolfenden had previously opened up on how their busy work schedules impact their living arrangements during an appearance on Loose Women.

He shared: "Charley's on tour [with the musical, Quiz]. Bless my mum and dad, I owe them a holiday after this run because they've stepped in and moved into the house.

"And they're looking after the kids, so yeah thanks, mum and dad! It's tough. And I'm a real softie with the kids as well.

"I just love being at home with them, to be away from them... I'm counting down the days to the weekend."