Nigella Lawson and husband to divorce

Nigella Lawson and her husband are set to divorce after pictures of their headline-grabbing argument emerged last month (Jun13).

Advertising tycoon and art collector Charles Saatchi was cautioned for assault by police after the publication of the shocking snaps, which showed him with his hand around Lawson's throat during a row at a London restaurant.

Lawson reportedly moved out of the couple's London home with her children Cosima, 19, and Bruno 17, after the incident and now they are heading for divorce.

Saatchi confirmed the split in a statement to Britain's Mail on Sunday which reads, "I am sorry to announce that Nigella Lawson and I are getting divorced. This is heartbreaking for both of us as our love was very deep, but in the last year we have become estranged and drifted apart."

The businessman goes on to insist he never "abused her physically" during the marriage, adding, "I feel that I have clearly been a disappointment to Nigella during the last year or so, and I am disappointed that she was advised to make no public comment to explain that I abhor violence of any kind against women, and have never abused her physically in any way...

"I must stress again that my actions were not violent. We are instinctively tactile people. Yes, my hands were around her neck, and they had been touching her arm. Difficult as it may be to believe, for those who have seen the pictures, there was no pressure applied to her... Nigella has given a statement to police to support this view.

"I am sorry that we had a row. I am sorry she was upset. I am even more sorry that this is the end of our marriage. I wish Nigella only the best for her future, and for her continuing global success."

The pair wed in 2003. Lawson was previously married to journalist John Diamond, the father of her two children, who passed away in 2001.