EastEnders star Davood Ghadami has hit back against claims that he left his wife for his married pantomime co-star.
The actor, 42, known for playing Kush Kazemi on the BBC soap, is currently dating singer Melanie Barker, 32, who he starred against in a 2022/23 pantomime production of Aladdin.
The pair were both married at the time, but were reported to have left their respective spouses for each other, after sharing ‘sizzling on-stage chemistry’.
However, Davood has now broken his silence on the claims, taking to his Instagram on Sunday to clarify that he had separated from his wife prior to beginning his relationship with Melanie.
He wrote: ‘A newspaper chose to run a front page story about me yesterday. A surprise choice considering everything happening in our world.
‘It’s always been important for me to keep a degree of privacy regarding my personal life, but I feel I need to clarify a few things.
EastEnders star Davood Ghadami has hit back against claims that he left his wife for his married pantomime co-star (pictured with ex-wife Isobel)
The actor, 42, known for playing Kush Kazemi on the BBC soap, is currently dating singer Melanie Barker, 32, who he starred against in a 2022/23 pantomime production of Aladdin (pictured together)
The pair were both married at the time, but were reported to have left their respective spouses for each other, after sharing ‘sizzling on-stage chemistry’ (pictured with panto co-stars)
‘My wife and I separated in 2023. In 2024, my relationship with Mel began and we remain together and happy. There is life after separation and divorce.’
It comes after The Sun alleged that Davood and Melanie had fallen for each other during the Aladdin production, in which the soap star played Abananzar and the mother-of-three starred as Princess Jasmine.
The publication reported the pair were frequently ‘flirting backstage’ and were thought to have stayed in touch after the production, held at the Waterside Theatre in Aylesbury, had ended in early 2023.
While a source claimed that as their romance blossomed, both stars decided to leave their partners to move in together.
The insider alleged: ‘They are two very attractive people and it was clear they had sizzling on-stage chemistry together.
‘But the genie is now well and truly out of the bottle and they are a proper couple -living together, training together and posting photos on Instagram together.
‘It’s almost like a perfect fairytale ending — but for the previous partners they have left in their wake.’
The insider added that the romance is almost like the ‘perfect fairytale ending’, with the exception of the partners ‘left in their wake’.
However, Davood has now broken his silence on the claims, taking to his Instagram on Sunday to clarify that he had separated from his wife prior to beginning his relationship with Melanie
The Sun reported the pair were frequently ‘flirting backstage’ and were thought to have stayed in touch after the production, held at the Waterside Theatre in Aylesbury, had ended in early 2023 (pictured on EastEnders)
Davood and Melanie appear to have gone Instagram official, sharing a video of themselves together on a romantic trip to York in December (pictured)
Davood and Melanie appear to have gone Instagram official, sharing a video of themselves together on a romantic trip to York in December.
One snap even showed them standing in front of a neon sign which read: ‘Tell someone you love them this Christmas.’
The super fit couple also regularly work out together, with clips of the pair working up a sweat at Davood’s Crossfit gym.
The soap star met his wife Isobel at university more than 20 years ago, before they tied the knot in 2010.
The couple went on to welcome two daughters together – Eve, 12, and nine-year-old Grace.
Davood had previously gushed about his long-term love and her enduring support while he was competing in the 2017 series of Strictly Come Dancing with professional dancer Nadiya Bychkova.
He told Woman magazine in 2018: ‘My wife and I know each other inside out and have a genuine understanding about how the other ticks.
‘We met 17 years ago at university so we’ve got a lot of shared history. I’m an incredibly lucky man.
The super fit couple also regularly work out together, with clips of the pair working up a sweat at Davood’s Crossfit gym
Davood had previously gushed about his long-term love and her enduring support while he was competing in the 2017 series of Strictly Come Dancing with professional dancer Nadiya Bychkova (Isobel pictured in the Strictly audience)
‘My life couldn’t be the way it is without her support. She was amazing when I was in Strictly and kept everything going.’
During his stint on the dance show, Davood became one of many stars to be hit with the rumours of the Strictly curse, but was quick to shut them down.
He said at the time: ‘People will say things. As long as you know the truth and the people you love know the truth it shouldn’t matter. I guess I did learn that,” he said.
‘My wife watches Kush on the TV pretending to be married to or sleeping with another character. So she is used to dealing with this sort of situation in my professional life.
‘She is the rock, the steadiness in my life and she knows that. I’m incredibly lucky. She is so supportive.’
Meanwhile, Melanie shares three young children, who are aged two, five and seven, with her husband Daniel Haslam, whom she is thought to still be legally married to.
The Sun reports that she left the family home last year and moved her children to live with Davood in Essex.
