Former Coronation Street actress Helen Flanagan has given a raw and honest insight into the emotional impact her separation from ex-fiancé Scott Sinclair is having on their eldest child.
The emotional toll of separation on Matilda
In a candid series of Instagram Stories updates, the 35-year-old mother-of-three explained that while her younger children seem largely unaffected, her 10-year-old daughter Matilda finds the transition between homes particularly difficult. Flanagan split from footballer Sinclair in 2022 after a 13-year relationship.
"What I find probably the most difficult is probably with Matilda," Helen confessed. "Me and her dad broke up when she was seven, and I feel like Delilah is just so oblivious she doesn't care. Charlie doesn't care he was one. But Matilda is sensitive, and she takes everything very much in."
She revealed that every time Matilda returns from her father's house, she is "really moody" and "really sassy". Flanagan believes her daughter feels a sense of being "disowned" when she is not with her, despite her mother's constant reassurance.
Navigating life after pantomime and a public row
The update comes as Flanagan adjusts to normal family life again after finishing a run playing the Evil Queen in a Liverpool pantomime production of Snow White. Her children spent the Christmas period with their father, Scott Sinclair.
Helen described the challenge of readjusting when the children return. "It's always just like, such an adjustment when they come back," she said. "It really takes a while for the children to adjust and then for me to adjust."
This period follows a very public outburst earlier in December 2025, where Flanagan slammed Sinclair on social media for missing their four-year-old son Charlie's first nativity performance to attend the Formula 1 in Abu Dhabi.
Prioritising the children's relationship with their father
Despite the tensions, Helen Flanagan emphasised her commitment to ensuring her children maintain a strong bond with their father. "Regardless of mine and her dad's relationship, I always want her to have a relationship with the Father, because I think that's good for her," she stated.
She makes a point of telling Matilda that her father loves her and that she must love her daddy, keeping the adult issues separate from the children's experience.
To help ease the communication gap when Matilda is at her dad's, Flanagan revealed they plan to buy her a phone. "I said to her, I was like, 'Did you want mummy to FaceTime you?' And she was like, 'Yeah, I did.' So we're getting her a phone anyway," Helen explained.
The actress shares three children with Scott Sinclair: Matilda, 10, Delilah, seven, and four-year-old son Charlie. The couple were engaged from 2018 until their split in 2022.
