Andy Carroll Calls Marriage to Billi Mucklow a 'Car Crash'

Former Premier League footballer Andy Carroll has described his marriage to reality television personality Billi Mucklow as a "car crash," asserting that their relationship was fundamentally unstable even before they were married.

Carroll, 37, detailed his perspective on the marriage in his new book, "Owning It." He shared that by the time he married Mucklow in 2022, after an engagement in 2014, the relationship had been deteriorating for some time. He indicated that the marriage was "on its last legs" prior to their wedding.

The couple, who have three children together—Arlo, Wolf, and Marvel Mae—along with Carroll's two older children, Emilie Rose and Lucas, faced significant challenges, particularly during Carroll's two-year stint in France playing for Amiens and Bordeaux. Carroll claims that Mucklow had initially promised to join him abroad but later did not, leading to his feelings of depression and isolation.

"When I played abroad the original plan was for my family to come with me," Carroll wrote. "I'd rather not go into detail but due to complicated family dynamics on my partner’s side, she stayed in Rod Stewart’s old house. She said she'd join me if I secured a job abroad, she reneged on the deal."

He noted that while he initially enjoyed his time in France, he was "too depressed and drinking too much" to cope with the separation from his children. His marriage, he stated, was "disintegrating" during this period.

Carroll also reflected on the transition to life after football, explaining that retirement brought about a significant upheaval. "When the kids went back to school, I was dropping them off in the morning and picking them up in the afternoon and doing nothing much in between," he wrote. "Suddenly life without football was like staring into the abyss."

He admitted that increased time at home post-retirement may have strained his relationship with Mucklow. "As much as a footballer might want his relationship to be equal, it's simply not possible. Everything has to revolve around him. Not because he's better than his partner, because he needs to be the best he can possibly be to keep getting contracts and earning good money," he explained.

Following their separation, Carroll began a relationship with celebrity hairstylist Lou Teasdale. He recounted meeting Teasdale at Glastonbury in July 2024, shortly after a public altercation at a party. Carroll described Teasdale as "so much fun" and "so caring and easy to talk to," adding that she "introduced me to a whole new way of seeing things."