How Emma Willis hatched a secret TV masterplan to save husband Matt from the brink & heartbreaking reason for ‘fave’ gig

When Emma and Matt Willis began hosting Love Is Blind UK, many doubted the husband-and-wife turned presenting duo would last. But launching the third series of the show this week, they have proved their critics wrong and cemented their status as the most in-demand TV couple – earning millions in the process. Now it can be revealed that Matt’s transformation from wayward boyband member to doting TV husband was deliberately masterminded by Emma, 50, to keep him on the straight and narrow, and their marriage intact. Emma and Matt Willis have become the most in-demand TV couple after two decades as an item Credit: Courtesy of Netflix. Their latest TV project is Netflix’s Love Is Blind UK, which launched on Wednesday Credit: Netflix A TV insider tells me: “Many people have forgotten just how close Matt and Emma came to splitting up. “Matt was your typical rockstar who just wanted to drink, take drugs and party. “There were times when Emma contemplated walking away. But she has the patience of a saint and together they worked on their marriage. “She helped Matt get sober and their careers have flourished ever since.” Aside from the lucrative Love Is Blind gig, they have already hosted a number of programmes on Channel 4 and ITV, including Celebrity Sabotage. Singer Matt, 43, is also working on a three part series for the BBC, The Recovery Project, which will see the rocker help recovering addicts in south Wales into work. Meanwhile, Emma is taking on the biggest presenting job on television as the new host of Strictly Come Dancing alongside Johannes Radebe and Josh Widdecombe. But Emma and Matt’s journey to become British TV’s new Mr and Mrs after 18 years of marriage has not been plain sailing. Emma Willis greeted Matt with a hug when he was crowned the winner of I’m A Celeb 2006 Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd Matt has been open about his battle with booze and drugs throughout his marriage with Emma Credit: Getty They first met in 2004 when Emma was an MTV presenter and was interviewing Matt’s boyband Busted. The 21-year-old rockstar has revealed that he was desperate to meet “the hot girl from MTV”, who is seven years older than him. The pair instantly hit it off and were pictured falling out of pubs and clubs together. The Busted singer has said: “For a year, me and Emma were party pals. Drinking buddies… who did other stuff.” But Matt was keeping a dark secret from his new girlfriend. He had been struggling with alcohol and drug addiction since rocketing to fame at just 19. It was only six months into the relationship that he first checked himself into rehab, but left three weeks later to go partying. After the relapse, Emma took him back. Then in 2006, Matt went on to win I’m A Celebrity and a year later he got down on one knee to ask her to marry him. The loved-up couple beamed during their star-studded wedding day in 2008, but what attendees didn’t know was that just three days earlier Matt had once again entered rehab. All seemed well following the wedding and the couple went on to have three children Isabelle, 17, Ace, 15, and Trixie, ten. But when Busted reunited in 2017 for a tour, Matt relapsed once more – when his youngest daughter was just ten months old. “That last relapse was really hard for Emma,” Matt has said. “Because we had three kids. I’d been eight years sober – we’d thought that it was behind us.” It almost ended their marriage, but instead of throwing the towel in the pair sought marriage counselling. Emma has said of that episode in her life: “It’s very easy to look in on a situation that you’re not directly involved in and go: ‘F*** that, get out of that,’ but when you’re in it, you have that history together… And if you love someone, you’re not going anywhere.” “It’s not easy. Sometimes I feel I’ve got four kids instead of three. There’s been a lot of joy but, equally, it’s been incredibly heavy at times.” But the Willises have made it work with a cunning plan on Emma. My insider said: “Yes they have had oodles and oodles of counseling and therapy, but what Emma really wanted was them to work together. “She is protective of him and likes to keep him close. She is all too aware that when Matt last fell off the wagon it was sparked by him being alone and away from his family. “So when this opportunity came to work together she jumped at it.” Now the couple are helping others find romance on Love Is Blind UK, which launched on Netflix on Wednesday. I’m told it is the “favourite” show either of them work on, with the latest series filmed in their beloved Ibiza which Emma refers to as “our happy place”. Emma and Matt share three children Isabelle, 17, Ace, 15, and Trixie, ten Credit: Instagram Despite the couple’s ups and downs they remain an item It is their first job together since 2008 when they hosted the I’m A Celeb spin-off show. According to my source, they landed their latest roles together after Emma’s agent informed her that they were bringing Love Is Blind to the UK and wanted a husband-and-wife presenting duo. She got Matt to sit down and watch the US version of the dating series and they ended up bingeing it late into the night. Emma has joked she was left practically “begging” for them to get the job. Emma’s masterplan has certainly worked as they approach their 20th wedding anniversary. Seeing off other couples like Tess Daly and Vernon Kay, Cat Deeley and Patrick Kielty, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes. This week on the Tea at Four podcast they were asked why they have become TV’s power couple. Matt said he found it “so funny”, with Emma adding: “We’re like, we haven’t got a f***ing clue.” But pressed on the secret to their long marriage The Voice presenter got emotional, explaining: “We just really like each other. I mean, I love him. I fancy him. “He’s my best friend and he’s really, along with the kids, the only person I really want to spend all my time with. “It sounds really w***y to say, it just gets better and better. It really has. “And I think that’s because you grow together, you evolve together, you change as humans, like constantly throughout your relationship. “And, I’ve heard someone else say this, you don’t just fall in love with one person, but you fall in love with multiple people over the time that you’re with that one person.” “It’s easy to go, f*** this. You know what I mean? I’m out. See yah.” They might claim they haven’t got a clue how their marriage survived showbiz. But looking at their unbreakable bond they should probably start bottling it.