Actress Brooke Vincent, known for her 15-year role as Sophie Webster on Coronation Street, has ended her four-year engagement to footballer Kean Bryan. Sources close to the couple describe their decade-long relationship as having become "toxic" following the premature end of Bryan's football career, reportedly due to relentless partying.
Vincent, 34, had reportedly been considering leaving Bryan, 29, for several months. Insiders suggest that the atmosphere between them grew "extremely difficult" after Bryan, a former West Bromwich Albion defender, retired prematurely from football due to a serious ACL injury. He has since struggled to find new opportunities and has allegedly been preoccupied with partying, while Vincent has focused on their two young sons, Mexx, six, and Monroe, four, and her acting career.
"She couldn't go through with getting married the way things are at home," one source told the Daily Mail. "Kean has struggled with the end of his football career and, rather than look for new opportunities, he’s been out partying a lot while she’s totally focused on their kids and acting. It's sad – but behind the scenes things have been extremely toxic and the rows have got out of control."
Vincent and Bryan have unfollowed each other on Instagram, and Vincent has been seen without her engagement ring. She posted on Instagram over the August Bank Holiday weekend, stating: "August… Somehow an ending and a beginning all at once," accompanied by photos of her summer with friends and her sons, which did not include Bryan.
The end of the engagement comes as Vincent returns to full-time television. Seven years after leaving Coronation Street to focus on motherhood, she joined the cast of Hollyoaks in July, taking on a role as a schoolteacher and drugs counsellor embroiled in a child-grooming scandal. Vincent's acting career began at age 11 in 2004, and her role as Sophie Webster included a groundbreaking storyline where the character came out as lesbian, which contributed to Coronation Street winning Broadcast of the Year at the 2010 Stonewall Awards. She also competed in Dancing On Ice in 2018, finishing as runner-up.
Vincent and Bryan began their relationship in 2016, moved in together in 2017, and announced their first child in 2019. Vincent spoke glowingly of Bryan at the time, saying, "Kean brings out the best in me." She took maternity leave from Coronation Street for the birth of their sons in October 2019 and May 2021.
Bryan's football career was impacted by an injury sustained in 2021 during his first start for West Bromwich Albion. The ACL injury prevented him from resuming his career, and he was released by the club in May 2023, announcing his retirement that November at age 27. He had previously described Vincent as his "rock" during this period.
The couple became engaged in April 2022, but sources suggest their relationship deteriorated afterward. "Brooke is another example of a young soap star who has struggled to keep a marriage together," a source said. "But she simply could not take it any more."
Now, with the wedding called off, Vincent faces the challenge of balancing demanding acting material with navigating the relationship breakdown and caring for her sons.