Richard Keys: Ex-Sky Sports host hits back at critics after remarrying - denies he left wife fighting cancer

The ex-Sky Sports presenter, 66, has tied the knot with Lucie Rose, 35 and hit back at critics, denying his new wife was a friend of his daughter and that he left his first while she was fighting cancer. The pair married in Kingswear, Devon on Saturday (June 24), in an intimate outdoor ceremony.

Richard Keys and his first wife Julia split in 2016, after an alleged affair with his new wife, which Keys denies. Julia had admitted in 2018 that she was ‘devastated’ after her marriage of 34 years came to an end, as she was recovering from thyroid cancer.

After facing criticism of the wedding, Keys hit back in an online blog, denying several accusations. He said: “When my first marriage collapsed my wife was not suffering with cancer. She’d been in remission after a dreadful scare – one she managed with dignity and bravery.

“I was with her every step of the way. She is still very much alive and well, although it is true that cancer sufferers always need to be careful about their health.”

The football presenter, who now works for Qatar-based BeIn sports, also dismissed claims that Lucie and his daughter were friends, saying: “Lucie was never my daughters’ friend – let alone her best friend. They met twice. The circumstances don’t matter – at this stage. That’s something I’ll address going forward.”

Richard Keys left Sky Sports in 2011 along with his broadcast partner Andy Gray after making  derogatory comments about female assistant referee Sian Massey. The off-air comments were recorded and leaked online, with Keys making comments about Massey and the ability of women to officiate at football matches.