Rod Stewart admits ‘it tore me to shreds’ as he shares reason behind marriage breakdown

Sir Rod Stewart said his sister Mary urged him not to marry his fiancée at the time, before finding love again with his current spouse Penny Lancaster

Sir Rod Stewart has been married three times and has eight children (Image: GETTY)

Sir Rod Stewart has opened up about the breakdown of his marriage to his second wife Rachel Hunter. The 80-year-old’s first spouse was Alana Hamilton from 1979 to 1984, and together they have daughter Kimberly and son Sean.

After this relationship came to an end, Rod went on to marry former model Rachel, who was 26 years his junior.

At the time of the pair tying the knot, Rachel was 21, while he was 45, and a year later they welcomed their daughter Renee, followed by son Liam.

In a new interview with The Times, it is claimed that the Maggie May hitmaker met his current wife Penny Lancaster just a day after he split from Rachel in 1999.

Rod Stewart said his split from Rachel Hunter ‘tore him to shreds’ (Image: GETTY)

Reflecting on their first meeting, he said Penny wanted his autograph, and he then asked her if she liked dancing.

“She was an incredible dancer, gorgeous, [and wearing] 6ft 4in heels,” he recalled.

While he was very fond of the Loose Women star from the get-go, Rod admits he was advised to be single for a while after splitting from Rachel.

“There were six months between Rachel and Penny because my bass player, who had Penny’s number, wouldn’t give it to me,” he explained to the publication.

Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster have been married since 2007 (Image: GETTY)

“He said, ‘All you’re going to do now is s**g around’. And he was right, I had a splendid time in those six months.”

The former couple officially divorced in 2006, and a year later he married Penny, with whom he shares two sons.

“Rachel left me because she was too young. My sister said I should never have married her in the first place, but it tore me to shreds,” he confessed.

Addressing his marriage to Penny, he went on to say she has “got everything” he’s ever wanted.

The couple have now been married for 18 years, and are still going strong.

Last week, the Loose Women star looked every inch the supportive wife as he played the legends slot on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury.

Also in attendance were the couple’s sons Alastair, 19, and Aiden, 14, as well as Renee and his daughter Ruby, whose mum is former model Kelly Emberg.

Ahead of playing at the festival, Rod and Penny celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary in style.

The couple spent the day hopping on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express to revisit the spots where they got engaged, tied the knot, and honeymooned.

Rod popped the question to Penny in Paris, they exchanged vows two years later Portofino, Italy, which was followed by a luxury yacht-based honeymoon off the coast.