‘My Mom, Your Dad’ viewers hold back tears as Maria reveals the real reason her 16-year marriage ended

My Mum, Your Dad viewers gave Maria Lopiano a thunderous round of applause on Tuesday night as she opened up about why her 16-year marriage ended.

The Surrey events coordinator and her 19-year-old daughter Livia are part of the cast of the second season of the show about parents hoping to find love with the help of their children.

On Tuesday’s show, Maria, 51, revealed the shocking moment her marriage ended after five years of being together in a relationship that she “felt like a friend”.

She told the group, “I didn’t feel like a wife to anyone, I felt like a partner.”

“And then it came out. He’s gay and he’s really living a lie.”

Livia was surprised by her mother’s openness and told the group about the influence she had on the family.

She said, “My three best friends know and that’s it. So it’s a big deal to me. While I feel really bad for my mom and wish it had never happened to her, I also feel bad for my dad that he felt like he had to tell all his family and friends and no one knew.”

“When I was first told my parents were splitting up, I was about 12. They told us at a coffee shop and I haven’t been there since.

‘But a year later I found out the real reason.

“I was never mad at my dad because I knew what he had gone through to get to that point and how difficult it was for him.”

Presenter Davina McCall was among those on the X show who praised Maria for her openness to the group.

She wrote: “Maria had to work really hard to say that…to let people in…Liv is so mature. These kids are such an honor to their parents.”

Others said, “Parents don’t just tell each other their life stories, their children also comfort each other through traumas,” and “I love Maria.”

“I love this show. It’s so wholesome for kids to see their parents find love/meet people.”

“This is what everyone needed. Davina knows what she’s doing!”

In another episode of the show, 47-year-old Chris, a newly-minted facility manager and restaurant bar owner, stepped in and left the other dads feeling “jealous” as he speed-dated all the moms.

Chris, from Kingston upon Hull, said he enjoyed the freedom of single life but was now starting to feel a loneliness he had never felt before.

His daughter, 17-year-old Ava, wants him to stop despising himself and let someone new in, as he would like to settle down with the right person, closer to his age, and she thinks The Retreat is the perfect place to do that.

Speaking ahead of the show, he said: “I watched the first series. Then we saw it mentioned on TV and social media, my children said they were going to apply. I’ve been single since splitting up with the mother of my children, so it was an opportunity to really get to know someone and see a different way of doing it.”

Chris met his ex-wife and the mother of his children when they were both teenagers. They separated in their 40s.

He continued, “I met my kids’ mom when I was a teenager. We were together for a really long time and we broke up when I was 40. My dating history is only from then on. I’ve never been in a relationship or been in a relationship.

“I think it’s really important that your kids like the person you’re dating. The kids come first, no matter how much I like the person or not, if they don’t get along with my kids, it’s game over for me.”

My Mum, Your Dad, set to premiere in 2023, is set to be a middle-aged version of Love Island.

The cast includes: Christian and his son Lucas; David and his daughter Tiana; Maria and his daughter Livia; Andy and her daughter Issa; Davina, Clare and her daughter Aimee; Vicky and her daughter Angharad; Jenny and her son Malachi; and Danny and his son Ellis.

My Mum, Your Dad continues on Wednesdays on ITV and ITVX at 9pm.