Stacey Solomon is no stranger to a candid confession. The former I’m A Celebrity contestant has spoken openly on everything from body positivity to the realities of married life.

Now, she has revealed that she and her husband Joe Swash didn’t have sex for a whole year in 2024. The eye-opening admission came during the final episode of their BBC series Stacey & Joe. In a conversation between the pair, Joe explained he wanted another child. In response, Stacey quipped that they hadn’t had sex for a long time.

‘Next year, is the year of enlightenment for me, I’m going to find out who Joe Swash really is or maybe we could make another kid,’ said Joe. Stacey responded: ‘I don’t think so. I don’t think we had sex in 2024. We haven’t seen each other!’

The cameras have been following Stacey and Joe for the show as they balance their busy careers with family life to their children, Rex, five, Rose, three, and Belle, two, and Stacey’s sons Zachary, 17, and Leighton, 12. The show was intended to be a ‘Kardashians style’ look at their life in their home, Pickle Cottage. There have been reports that Stacey ‘regrets’ signing up to do the show, and fears she’s coming across ‘too bossy.’

However, Stacey recently took to Instagram seeming to dispel these rumours, ahead of the final episode airing. ‘I’m just sitting down, the girls have gone to bed and I’m getting ready to watch our show. I’ve just realised it’s the last episode tonight it’s gone so quickly I feel like it was only yesterday we were pooing ourselves about it coming out on the telly and now it’s at the end….,’ she said. ‘But I just wanted to come on here quickly and say your messages and all of the things I get tagged in and all the comments and everything about the show have been so lovely. The feedback has been really amazing.

Stacey and Joe have been open about sharing the realities of married life with viewers. One episode of their show focuses on their couples counselling session and another seeing Swash struggle with his ADHD diagnosis. ‘Honestly, the biggest battle in my life is timekeeping. Whether I’ve got to get the kids to school on time, pick them up on time, get dinner on time, get to bed on time, get to work on time, I am always one step behind time,’ Joe admitted.

This isn’t the first time that Stacey has got candid about her sex life. In on a previous episode of Loose Women, Stacey confessed that certain sex positions with Joe left her legs burning. ‘If TV is anything to go by, I’m super lazy,’ she said. ‘There’s some things you do, you think ‘I don’t think I can retain this any longer, my thighs are burning…I’m sweating.’ During another appearance on Loose Women in 2018, Stacey confessed her love life was better than ever because they have sex in front of the TV.

Co-host Janet Street-Porter declared: ‘Never have a television in the bedroom because you obviously don’t want any kind of sex life if you want a telly in there.’ Stacey replied: ‘Excuse me, my sex life is wonderful… and I get to watch my favourite films at the same time!’

Of course, as we know by now there really is no ‘normal’ when it comes to sex, and every couple has a different approach to how often, and when, they should be doing it. But having in a so-called dry spell in a marriage might be more common than we think. Data from nationally representative US surveys indicate that around 7 percent of married adults haven’t had sex in the past year, while 4 percent haven’t had sex in the past five year.

It’s impossible to put a number on how often we should be having sex, but some scientists have tried. A 2017 study that appeared in the Archives of Sexual Behavior found that the average adult currently enjoys sex 54 times a year, which equates to about once a week. This is less sex, by about nine per year, compared to a similar study done in the 1990s.

Meanwhile, another study published in Social Psychological and Personality Science discovered that having sex once weekly frequency was the perfect standard for happiness.
Earlier this year, Nick and Vanessa Lachey revealed in an interview with Brides magazine that they have sex once a week – and even have a day reserved for getting down to business. That day is every Wednesday – or ‘hump day’, as it’s known.

Vanessa said she broached the idea with Nick after a friend advised her to schedule a day that prioritised their physical relationship. ‘He’s like, “What, schedule a sex day?”‘ Vanessa said. ‘It sounds weird when you say that, so we decided: Wednesday – hump day.’

 Sex and her reality show with Joe isn’t the only TV show that has been on Stacey’s mind. Earlier this week, Stacey took to Instagram the morning after the recent Bafta TV Awards to reveal she was ‘devastated’ that her BBC home makeover show Sort Your Life Out didn’t win. ‘I’ll be honest, I’m devastated. I’m not handling it very well, not taking it very gracefully,’ she said. ‘I’m so gutted for our team.’

This led to mixed reactions from fans. Some people supported Stacey, calling her ‘refreshingly honest’ and suggesting she was simply just ‘disappointed for her team.’ Others were quick to criticise the star, telling her to ‘get a grip’ and to stop being a ‘bad loser.’

Stacey has not publicly commented since her Bafta post, but a source has claimed the star is worried ‘it could all be over,’ continuing ‘The negative comments really upset her, she takes them to heart. She never wants to be seen as ungrateful, because she’s not. She had a really humble upbringing and everything she does, she does to give her kids the best opportunities possible. They are what drives her.’