Claire Sweeney banned herself from dating for two years.
The 45-year-old beauty decided to shun love after splitting from her partner Daniel Reilly – who is 14 years her junior – nine months after the birth of their son Jaxon in 2014 because she wanted to focus completely on the little one.
She explained: "I broke up with Daniel early last year and I decided not to date seriously for the first two years of Jaxon’s life. He will be two in September and I made a pact with myself. It was only fair to give him that time; I wanted it to be all about him. I’ve only been out for the occasional dinner and, obviously, it would be nice to meet someone in the future. I wouldn’t rule out dating younger guys either. The man of my dreams could be 31 – I don’t feel I need to find a polar opposite to Daniel or go extreme with an older one."
And, although she was left heartbroken when she split from Daniel, the blonde beauty is still hopeful she’ll get married one day in the future – even if it’s in 40 years’ time.
Speaking to Closer magazine, she said: "I believe in marriage, although it hasn’t happened to me yet!
"I still hope to tie the knot. My grandma met the love of her life and got married at 86, so who knows? But I certainly don’t feel there are any voids in my life."