Today show host Karl Stefanovic has hit back at long-running allegations that his current wife Jasmine ‘stole him’ from his ex Cassandra Thorburn, explaining in a recent interview that she’s been pilloried and it’s not fair.
Karl and Jasmine first met in late 2016, five months after the television presenter and his ex-wife called it quits on their 21-year marriage. Two years later they tied the knot in a lavish ceremony in Mexico and are now awaiting the arrival of their first child together.
However, Karl said Jasmine has long been accused of ‘stealing’ the 45-year-old from Cassandra, and it’s time to shut down those rumours. Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph’s Stellar magazine, Karl said his wife has done no wrong.
“She’s been through so much,” he told the publication. “She’s been pilloried and accused of things that didn’t happen. It’s not her fault she fell in love with bugalugs, and the accusations were wrong about her stealing me from Cassandra. It’s rubbish and it’s hurtful.”
Karl added: “She’s just a beautiful, sweet woman from Queensland who runs a business and fell in love with me.”
The presenter went on to say that Cassandra has “earned the right” to speak about their marriage, and wishes her the best for her future. Cassandra has openly discussed her previous relationship with the TV host on numerous occasions, most recently opening up about the stress of going through a divorce.
Speaking on the first episode of her brand new weekly podcast Divorce Story last month, which she co-hosts with broadcaster Annaliese Dent, the 49-year-old admitted she is “over” Karl and revealed how she suddenly found herself a “single, stay at home mum” when her marriage ended suddenly.
“People often say, are you over them? Yes I’m over them. I’m over my ex-husband. But it’s about going through the grief of going through a divorce,” she told psychologist Jacqui Manning.
“Going through a divorce is really stressful, so that’s something to grieve – you’re grieving the process of what you’ve gone through. My dad passed away not long after my divorce. That then adds to your grief.”
Prior to that Cassandra spoke out on a few occasions about her feelings towards the father of her children, telling Women’s Day in 2017 that the Channel Nine star was “dead to her”.
“The children still have a father but I don’t have a husband,” she told the publication. “He really is dead to me and no, we won’t ever be friends again.”
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