Kerry Katona in tears as she opens up about struggles with loneliness after sad split

Kerry Katona has admitted that being single has left her feeling 'lonely'. The showbiz legend, 44, split from her fiance Ryan Mahoney towards the end of last year and has been looking for love on the latest series of E4 reality show Celebs Go Dating.

The former Atomic Kitten star was initially married to Westlife singer Brian McFadden and has Molly, 23, as well as Lilly-Sue, 22, with him but then went on have Heidi, 18, and 17-year-old Max with second husband Mark Croft. She also has daughter DJ, 11, with the late George Kay but admitted on the latest episode of the E4 reality show that while she is surrounded by her children, it is still a struggle without that special someone.

She told dating experts Anna Williamson and Paul C. Brunson: "I do get lonely. I know when I'm at home, when we got back from Ibiza, I was really down. I wanted someone to be there for me. I've got my kids and I love being at home with my kids but it is lonely."

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READ MORE: Kerry Katona sobs as she reveals what ex Ryan Mahoney said to her that caused split

The OnlyFans star was on the verge of tears as she revealed on camera that she has a fear of 'rejection' and this has left her feeling unsure of what she wants out of her love life.

She said: "I miss 'Hiya babe, guess what I've been up to today?' But I don't want to put myself out there to be rejected again. I don't know what I want. It's like the dream would be what I've always dreamt, and it's never worked before. It's now putting me off. I want someone for me."

Kerry had already had an ill-fated date with a man called Dave, who speculated that she will only 'relax' with a potential partner when she feels confident that they don't 'want her for the image'. But as Anna and Paul revealed to her that her next date would be a man called Paolo Margaglione, she took umbrage with one factor in particular.

The 33-year-old, who lives in Huddersfield, stands at a height of 5ft 8, and Kerry, who is 5ft 2, threw herself to the floor in disbelief as she crawled around yelling: "I'm gonna have to push him round in a b****** pram!" But, as it turned out, Kerry was rather taken with him after they met, as she added: "I tell you what, he's very handsome. Maybe I over reacted a bit?"

Opening up about what ended her relationship with Ryan, she said: "[I've been single] since November. I was in a six-and-a-half year relationship. Eight years younger. we became business partners. That's when it..." The pair then chatted about the ins and outs of having children after Paolo revealed that he had two little girls from a previous relationship.

Things seemed to be going well between Kerry and Paolo, and she even told him that it was her 'favourite date so far' as they clinked glasses. She said in a confessional: "So impressed that the agency has found someone who ticked so many boxes. The age difference is the only thing but we'll work on it."

When the waiter came round with the bill, Kerry insisted on paying and Paolo joked that he 'felt like a kept man', adding 'I could get used to this. Under her breath, Kerry said: "I am used to it." Although she was 'less than impressed' that he didn't fight her for the chance to settle up himself although she was not going to 'hold that against him' ultimately, and they parted on good terms.

It looks like it was second time lucky at the agency for Kerry as she appears to have found love in the agency this time around. Kerry struck up a connection with Paolo while on the hit E4 show, and now, it looks like the pair have taken the next step in their relationship.

A source told The Sun : "Paolo is already living in Kerry’s home - they’re together 24/7 so it just made sense for him to move in. Things are going really well between them!"

While filming for the series, Dr Tara told the Mirror that we can expect to see Kerry 'tell all' about her former relationship.

"Lovely Kerry has an amazing story. People will really get to hear what has been happening since she last joined the agency. A lot has happened since she last joined," she said.

"She really is able to use our agency as a platform to tell us what truly happened and her narrative. She has had a very traumatic life but is in a very good place now to move forward with romance and dating."

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