Tori Spelling was ‘relieved’ when Dean McDermott announced their split

Spelling admitted she was secretly pleased when McDermott made a surprise statement to confirm they had decided to go their “separate ways”. Photo / Getty Images

Tori Spelling was relieved when Dean McDermott announced their marriage split on Instagram.

The former couple’s relationship had been subjected to months of scrutiny when the 57-year-old star made a surprise statement to confirm they had decided to go their “separate ways” and “start a new journey” apart, and while he later “apologised” to the Beverly Hills, 90210 actress and removed the post, she admitted she was secretly pleased with it.

Speaking on her misSPELLING podcast, she said: “He was reacting emotionally, and he was still drinking and, you know, he was in that spiral.”

“But I gotta say, when I saw that post - inside, I was like, ‘Oh, thank god’.

“Because... I don’t know if I could have done it. I want to do it. I want it to be strong enough.”

Spelling filed for divorce from McDermott in March. Photo / Getty Images

Spelling - who eventually filed for divorce from McDermott in March, listing their official separation date as June 17, 2023, the same day the Chopped Canada star had made his statement - previously admitted she felt as if a “giant rock had been lifted” from her chest when her estranged spouse declared they had split.

She said on her podcast in April: “I looked at [his post], and I’m not kidding you guys, I felt like this giant rock had been lifted off my chest.”

“I could breathe deeply, and I was like, ‘Oh my God. He said it. He said it, so now I’m free’.”

The actress accused McDermott - the father of her children Liam, 17, Stella, 16, Hattie, 12, Finn, 11, and 7-year-old Beau - of having threatened divorce a “million times” before then.

She said: “I don’t think I’ve ever threatened that, like, ever. And there were times where I desperately wanted it.”

“But, like, I would never throw that in someone’s face if I didn’t actually mean it.

“I didn’t have the balls to leave. I couldn’t do it and he did it. [I thought], ‘Now I can move on. He’s put it out there. Let’s go. Yes! I needed this’, you know? Like, I couldn’t do it myself.”