Sad truth about Kirsty Gallacher’s downfall: Friends tell me why she’s fallen ‘by the wayside’ and how her ex ‘despises’ her and divulge colourful social life and intriguing Uber rumour, writes KATIE HIND

Kirsty Gallacher looked sad and lonely last week as she walked alone to High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court, where she was banned from driving for six months.

But it seems life hasn’t been kind to the once glamorous star of Sky Sports News lately.

Dressed in a simple navy blue jacket, her face bare of make-up, Kirsty’s only hint of her celebrity status on Wednesday was perhaps her £1,400 black Gucci Marmont bag.

His most recent ordeal was a severe sanction for driving 30 mph over the 5 mph limit near his home in Maiden’s Green, Berkshire, on April 1.

But it was his fifth driving offense in eight years (including a previous two-year drink-driving ban). 49-year-old Kirsty’s increasing problems are not limited to her problems behind the wheel.

Asking for leniency in the court, the woman told the judge that a benign tumor in her ear canal, diagnosed in the summer of 2021, was ‘growing very quickly’.

It’s only been two weeks since he was the victim of an attack in London’s Soho. In the incident, which is still being investigated by the Met Police, he was said to have been walked to his car after presenting his radio show by a man dressed in ‘all black’ who ‘kicked him like a football’.

No wonder, then, that the emotional mum-of-two took aim at the judge for her ‘lack of empathy’ at last week’s hearing and described herself as ‘broken’.

She told the Daily Mail: ‘I’m just an ordinary mum with the plates spinning, I’ll do anything.

‘My health will also be very difficult.’

She told the court that she would not be able to pay taxi fares in the event of the ban as she was the sole source of income for her two sons, 18-year-old Oscar and 15-year-old Jude, from her previous marriage to retired England rugby player Paul Sampson.

Friends say his humiliation ‘went so deep’ that he tried to cover his face with his coat as he left the pitch. In any case, it’s a huge fall from grace. In fact, those close to Kirsty had been worried for some time.

‘Kirsty’s had a really tough time lately,’ a friend told me. ‘His life didn’t go quite as he expected. He told the court how difficult things were for him, and while some may question whether he really had it that hard, there was a time when he had a lot on his plate.

Other members of the generation of female television hosts, such as Gabby Logan and Kelly Cates, have done very well; They are both presenting Match Of The Day but Kirsty has fallen a bit to the side. Maybe he wasn’t as talented as the others, but there are other factors.’

None of these factors were evident in Kirsty’s privileged upbringing. The daughter of golf legend Bernard Gallacher, Virginia Water grew up on the exclusive Wentworth Estate in Surrey and attended the £20,000-a-year St George’s School in Ascot, Berkshire, whose notable alumni include Princess Beatrice.

Kirsty, right, with Match of the Day presenter Gabby Logan, who is a pillar of strength for her friend

Turns out her career as television’s golden girl is 24 carat. After starting at Sky Sports News, she spent 20 years at the broadcaster and also hosted high-profile programs such as Kirsty’s Home Videos and hosted the Ant Vs Dec episode on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

While he continues to earn £150,000 a year presenting on Gold Radio and admitted in court to having savings of £80,000, the harsh reality is that the business appears to be drying up. He left Sky Sports in 2018 and his last full-time TV role was on the GB News breakfast show, which he left in November 2021 after the symptoms of his benign tumor made it impossible to continue.

The mass, an acoustic neuroma, causes tinnitus (a persistent ringing in the ear), which affects her sleep and gets worse when it starts at 3 a.m. But friends say that’s not the only reason for decreased demand.

Some point to Kirsty’s colorful social life as a contributing factor to her problems. ‘He likes to have a good time, he likes lunches and late nights,’ one said. ‘He’s a very social person but at the end of the night he’s usually the one still wanting to keep going. He’s so much fun. If you hang around Soho long enough you’ll see he’s having fun.’

Retired England rugby player Paul Sampson ‘doesn’t have a good thing to say’ about his ex-wife (pictured with them in 2011), a source says

It’s hardly surprising that he failed a roadside breath test when he was pulled over in his BMW X4 at around 11am in 2017. He was arrested, banned from driving for two years and given 100 hours of community service.

Kirsty has apparently told friends she no longer drives Uber, but her reasons are unclear. Perhaps that’s why he wanted to avoid another driving ban, one source pointed out. I’ve also heard rumors that the relationship between Kirsty and Sampson has been ‘very difficult’ since their acrimonious divorce in 2015.

‘Paul doesn’t have a good thing to say about Kirsty,’ says one of my sources. ‘There are some really bad things going on between them. He lives as a bachelor, dates all kinds of women, and has fun when his kids aren’t around.

‘The split left Kirsty broke and it hasn’t gotten any better since. Now the kids are grown, the exes barely talk. He belittles her.’

Today she is dating another former rugby player, 39-year-old Darren Clayton, who was introduced by friends Gabby and Kenny Logan.

The pair are said to have discussed marriage and their friends are said to be “relaxed” in their relationship because they fear he may have ended up in a situation that was “completely wrong”.

Gabby has been a source of strength for Kirsty and the two women went for a walk together in Richmond Park earlier this month.

A friend of mine says: ‘She is a wonderful woman and friend; “If anyone knows how difficult it is to navigate show business, it’s Gabby,” he says. ‘Kirsty’s friends want her to smile again.’