Shane Richie couldn’t help but take a cheeky swipe at Loose Women in front of his ex-wife Coleen Nolan during his appearance on This Morning.

The EastEnders legend spoke to hosts Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley about his upcoming storyline during Wednesday’s (November 6) episode of the ITV daytime show.

As Shane hinted that his character Alfie Moon could be about to get together with ex Kat Slater (Jessie Wallace), the actor made a joke about Loose Women, the show Coleen stars on.

After being welcomed to the studio by Ben, Shane said: “It was either This Morning or Loose Women and I only watch Loose Women now to find out what I’m doing” before adding: “If you know you know”. Ben left out a chuckle and Shane pointed out: “You got it didn’t you.”

Shane Richie couldn’t help but take a cheeky swipe at Loose Women in front of his ex-wife Coleen Nolan during his appearance on This Morning

As the interview came to an end, Ben and Cat crossed to the Loose Women studio to find out what was coming up on the programme. Host Charlene White reassured Shane that they wouldn’t be talking about him on the show as she stood next to co-stars Coleen, Judi Love and Brenda Edwards. Shane could be heard saying: “What am I doing today?” and “I recognise her” as the broadcasted returned to This Morning.

Coleen and Shane tied the knot in 1990 and share two sons Shane Jr and Jake. They split in 1999 after their marriage ended in heartbreak after both parties cheated. The couple first crossed paths in 1986 and planned a grand wedding four years later but eloped to Florida at the last minute when their plans went awry.

Coleen was on the Loose Women panel alongside Charlene White, Judi Love and Brenda Edwards

In 1996, Shane relocated to Manchester to take on the role of Danny Zuko in Grease, leaving Coleen and their two children in the south. In an excerpt from her 2009 autobiography, Coleen revealed that was the moment she began to suspect something wasn’t right.

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At an industry party for one of Shane’s musicals, her suspicions were aroused when she noticed an attractive brunette woman across the room. “At the after-show party, I can distinctly remember examining this one girl. There were loads of people there but she just stood out. She had really long dark hair and was wearing a skin-tight white dress,” Coleen reminisced.

Shane and Coleen were married for nine years(Image: Getty Images)

“Well, it must have been female intuition because that turned out to be the girl Shane had an affair with.” In his memoir, Rags to Riches, Shane confessed to being unfaithful to Coleen with dancer and actress Claire Taylor.

He disclosed: “I was lying so much that I couldn’t remember which story I’d told to each of them. And I’d lie to cover up the lies.”