Paddy McGuinness has made a huge change to his stand-up comedy show after his ex Christine was left “devastated” by jokes about their divorce.

The couple, who share three children, were married for 11 years and split in 2022, but they still live together to co-parent their kids and ensure a stable environment for them. Last month, Paddy, 51, returned to live comedy for the first time in almost a decade to perform his Nearly There show.

But shortly after the show began, he made a joke about his divorce from Christine, 36. Performing at King George’s Hall in Blackburn, Paddy said it was “all about love and respect tonight” and that he didn’t care “what race you are, what religion, what your sexuality is.”

According to The Sun, Paddy said: “Tonight, folks, we’re all here as human beings with one common goal – and that’s to help me pay for my divorce. I’ve had the pants down, me, the pants down.” The BBC Radio 2 host also added: “I’m thinking of getting Children In Need to do a bike ride for me next year, or come round to a bedsit in Bolton filming me.”

However, sources close to Christine told the newspaper that she had been “horrified” that Paddy made jokes on their relationship on stage since she has “kept a respectful silence during their divorce proceedings.” A source also added that Christine had been “distraught” at the idea people were laughing at their split.

This led to him scrapping any mention of their break-up during his later show in Middlesbrough, according to Mail Online, with a source saying he only mentioned Christine in regards to her autism diagnosis. The source said: “Paddy performed two 40-minute sets with a half hour break in between but at no point did he mention his divorce or splitting from Christine.

“It was like he was on his best behaviour and was trying not to further offend his ex-wife with his comedic content. He had clearly got the message about how upset Christine had been about his gags during the opening show and stayed clear from anything that could get him into trouble. At one point Paddy did reference Christine but only in regards to her autism diagnosis.”