Twenty years ago he was racking up the caps for Wales during his rugby playing days.
And his notorious partying and headline-grabbing relationship with Charlotte Church bought him as much fame as his sporting prowess, but two decades on and Gavin Henson is living a very different life.
The fly-half, 43, is now a happily married pub landlord, running his rural drinking hole The Fox in the Vale of Glamorgan.
The sportsman was a somewhat reluctant landlord, wary about the huge career shift that saw him ditch the pitch.
He told the MailOnline back in 2020 that with The Fox ‘dying a death’, he bowed to peer pressure and took on the job, explaining how ‘it coincided well with me finishing rugby – I didn’t have that down time.’
He may have had his reservations about his new career, but Gavin has since thrown himself into his job, proudly promoting the £22 a head seasonal menus alongside his latest job vacancies on social media.
The pub boss has also won praise for his recruitment drive in the local area, offering impressive salaries of £45,000 for a head chef role and £30,000 for bar staff.
Gavin Henson’s partying and relationship with Charlotte Church bought him as much fame as his sporting prowess, but two decades on he is living a very different life (Charlotte and Gavin pictured in 2005)
The fly-half, 43, is now a happily married pub landlord, running his rural drinking hole The Fox in the Vale of Glamorgan
Gavin runs the pub with his wife Katie Wilson Mould, who he married in an idyllic Gloucestershire ceremony in 2019 after three years together.
Gavin and Katie, who is the daughter of late property tycoon, Raymond Mould, welcomed a son in December 2020, whilst Gavin is still a devoted dad to his teenage children Ruby, 18, and Dexter, 16, who he co-parents with his ex Charlotte.
The sportsman was famously in a relationship with the Welsh soprano from 2005 until their split in 2010. Thanks to their wild nights out and lavish spending, the pair were dubbed the Posh and Becks of the rugby world in the mid noughties.
But the romance came crashing down six weeks after Gavin got down on one knee with a heart-shaped diamond.
Charlotte said at the time that the pair struggled with their vastly different lifestyles, musing: ‘The problem was we were such different people in every way. That was amazing at the start, as we were always teaching each other new things. Then we were just too different.
‘Different beliefs in everything. His world was alien to me. All that training. He’s so strict with what he eats, what time he goes to sleep. And my life was alien to him. I don’t think it was about arguing. I think one day we just thought, “What are we doing?”‘
Despite his reputation as a party boy, Gavin himself recently admitted that he has always struggled with socialising – citing his autism.
Speaking on podcast The Big Jim Show with host Jim Hamilton last month, Gavin said of any so called friends: ‘They’re always wanting something from me.’
‘So it’s not really like a friendship, I suppose, with some of the ex-rugby boys. I’m a poor friend.’
Gavin delighted fans with nostalgic nod to his pro-playing days last week, turning up to a live podcast recording in his old Wales kit and sporting his famous 2005 Grand Slam haircut (left)
‘I am on the autism spectrum, so that’s my excuse. It’s just the way I am, it’s nothing personal. I can be a little bit odd.
‘It’s not like I’ve gone out and got a new friend. I struggle socialising that way, unless I’ve had a drink.’
While Gavin admitted he hasn’t received an official medical diagnosis, he explained he had been on a journey of self discovery and spoke to some people who have suggested he is autistic.
He added: ‘For coaches and players throughout the years, it probably makes sense to them.
‘I think people found it hard to understand me. I’m a little bit different, obviously.
Gavin runs the pub with his wife Katie Wilson Mould, who he married in an idyllic Gloucestershire ceremony in 2019 after three years together (pictured in 2019)
‘And they always liked to try and mould you into the group and I learned how to do that, and fake that, to be a part of the team to fit in so that I’d play on the weekend.’
Whilst he hasn’t kept up with former teammates, Gavin has carried on playing the game he loves.
Last summer, he started playing for boyhood club Pencoed RFC.
And he even gave fans a nostalgic throwback to his pro-playing days last week at a rare public event, turning up to a live podcast recording in his old Wales kit and sporting his famous 2005 Grand Slam haircut.
Gavin posed for photos at Walkabout in Cardiff for his appearance at The Rugby Pod where he reflected on his career and his wild off-pitch antics, including the tale of how he once tried to sail his own yacht from Swansea to Cardiff for a night out, but almost capsized the boat in stormy seas.
The sportsman was in a relationship with Charlotte Church from 2005 until their split in 2010. Thanks to their wild nights out, the pair were dubbed the Posh and Becks of the rugby world (pictured in 2006)
These days, he’s much more comfortable manning the bar at The Fox, telling fans that the glitz and glamour of pro sport is far from his mind.
‘That’s not really me. But that’s what comes with it, I suppose, when you’re in the public eye with rugby. They’ve been great experiences, but it’s been nice to be out of it and just do family life and setting up a business.’
‘That has its own pressures, and that’s my living now.’
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The post Gavin Henson’s new life behind the bar: Charlotte Church’s rugby star ex once sailed his yacht to Cardiff for a night out but twenty years on he’s the landlord of a rural pub with his wife first appeared on Rugby 247.
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Author : rugby-247
Publish date : 2025-03-02 11:53:01
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