Tess Daly and Vernon Kay's split was a long time coming for the golden couple after showing tell-tale signs of struggle live on air, according to a celebrity body language expert. On Friday night (May 8), the former Strictly Come Dancing star, 57, and the BBC Radio 2 DJ, 51, announced their separation after 23 years of marriage. Taking to Instagram, the mum-of-two revealed that they made the tough decision "after much consideration", insisting that "no other parties were involved in this decision"

Their last TV appearance was in February, when the power couple hosted The One Show together, with the pair hosting together for the first time in years. Now, the celebrity expert Inbaal Honigman, has analysed the BBC tea-time show and revealed some of the telling signs that the couple's romance was coming to an end months before their announcement.

Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, she revealed to us: "Tess and Vernon are trying to put on a show of unity as they cross their legs towards each other, which creates a little pool of sympathy between them. But there are signs of the struggle Tess and Vernon face in spending this time together under the watchful eye of the fans.

"Both of them are keeping their arms in front of their bodies in a defensive, protective gesture. This shows that Tess and Vern are feeling vulnerable." Honigman reflected on the smaller actions towards each other while fronting the show, which indicated that something deeper was going on beyond the surface.

The celebrity psychic and body language expert added: "More than that, their hands are gathered away from one another, palms curled away from each other, which indicates a rift. While the big organ, their legs showing unity, the smaller organ, the hand, is expressing animosity and even antipathy.

"Tess's feet are tense and alert, while also both of them face their bodies towards the camera, not towards each other, so we can see that tensions are high. Most interestingly, when Vernon introduces Tess, he holds his hands wide, gesticulating broadly towards her and twirling his hands in the air.

"It shows that he views her as special, valuable and untouchable. He doesn't point directly at her, but around her, as if she's somehow so extraordinary that he can't gaze directly at her," she concluded.

The TV couple met in 2001 while working as rising TV presenters for rival channels, and crossed paths at a BBC Christmas party.

Vernon popped the question on Christmas Day 2002 at Tess' parents' home. In September 2003, the 57-year-old presenter and the BBC Radio 2 DJ, 51, walked down the aisle together in Vernon's hometown at St Mary's Catholic Church in Horwich, near Bolton.

One year later, Tess finally broke into the primetime TV industry when she landed a presenting gig on Strictly Come Dancing with the late TV icon, Bruce Forsyth. Tess got pregnant with their first daughter, Phoebe, 21, during the show's first series and later welcomed their daughter Amber, 16, in 2009.

Their separation comes less than six months after Tess and her former co-host Claudia Winkleman left the BBC dance competition last December.

She hosted the reality show for 21 years alongside the late Bruce Forsyth and the Traitors star before bidding farewell to the long-running show. The corporation is yet to announce who will replace the dynamic duo ahead of this year's new series.