This Morning relationship expert Michelle Elman praised her ‘wonderful’ fiancé Ben in her new book just weeks before she dumped him for cheating on her, MailOnline can reveal.

The life coach and author, 30, who often appears on ITV to give advice about relationships, shocked fans revealing that the couple’s engagement had ended after just 24 hours.

Now MailOnline can reveal how she paid tribute to her ex Ben just months before they ended their almost three-year relationship.

In her latest book The Selfish Romantic, that was published in January, she wrote a gushing tribute to her boyfriend, telling her fans their ‘love story will always be [her] favourite’.

On the acknowledgement page, where she also thanked her ‘inner circle’, she wrote: ‘And thank you to Ben. It isn’t easy dating an author, let alone one writing a dating book.

Do YOU know who Ben is? Email eirian.prosser@dailymail.co.uk  

This Morning relationship expert Michelle Elman praised her ‘wonderful’ fiancé Ben in her new book just weeks before she dumped him for cheating on her. Pictured: The couple in happier times 

Michelle had previously announced her engagement with her boyfriend of almost three years with a photo of the couple on her social media but yesterday revealed they had split

In an emotional video, announcing her 24 hour engagement she said: ‘All of this f***ing sucks but I always say this or something better. So I guess I’m due something better’

In the acknowledgement page of her latest book The Selfish Romantic, Michelle paid tribute to Ben telling her fans their ‘love story will always be [her] favourite’.

‘Thank you for never getting sick of hearing about the latest piece of dating research I found and holding my hand through the rollercoaster of emotions that is being an author.

‘It means the world that you trusted me to write whatever I wanted about us. Our love story will always be my favourite. Thank you for always giving me a safe space to land. I love you so much and this just the beginning of us.’

Throughout their relationship, the pair went to great lengths to hide Ben’s identity from the public eye.

Michelle never revealed his face, tagged or named him in any pictures online and later explained her mystery man had no social media accounts of his own.

She would post photographs of the back of his head or just of his hand in order to conceal his identity.

In one gushing post about her new-found love, she said: ‘He’s been the man behind these photos before you even knew he existed. He’s the guy without social media who fell in love with an influencer hehe.’

The lifestyle influencer added that Ben had ‘spoiled [her] plan to write a dating book from a single woman’s perspective by asking me to be his girlfriend two weeks before getting a book deal for The Selfish Romantic’.

The life coach and author, who has frequently appeared on the ITV show to give advice about relationships, took to her Instagram to explain that she had ended engagement after just 24 hours (pictured on This Morning last week)

Captioning the emotional clip, she penned: ‘I’m really putting my heart on my sleeve here and this is the most vulnerable I have ever got on here. Sending love to anyone who has a similar story. Onwards and upwards’

Michelle had been single for eight years when she began dating her former partner in August 2021 (pictured)

In August, celebrating their two year anniversary, Michelle declared to Ben: ‘I love you more than I ever thought I could love a human’

Michelle never revealed Ben’s face, tagged or named him in any pictures online and later explained her mystery man had no social media accounts of his own

In August, celebrating their two year anniversary, Michelle declared to Ben: ‘I love you more than I ever thought I could love a human.’

Alongside the post, where she spoke about the second year of their relationship being harder than the first, she shared a montage of her smiling and laughing, with a clip at the end showing Ben wrapping his arms around her.

Michelle had been single for eight years when she started dating Ben – the first man she saw following the Covid pandemic after four others had bailed on their date last minute. 

The couple had been in a seemingly happy relationship, with the author previously announcing her upcoming nuptials with a photo on social media.

Yet later that day Michelle received a message from one of her followers revealing he had been cheating on Michelle with her. 

In an emotional video last night, Michelle revealed that Ben had ‘f***ed up’ and ‘ruined a really good thing’ – but insisted to her concerned fans that she would be OK.

The TV personality made light of the fact she has made a career out of giving people advice about their love life as she admitted she finds it ‘deeply ironic now’.

The couple had been in a seemingly happy relationship, with the author previously announcing her upcoming nuptials with a photo on social media

Michelle became a motivational coach after living through her own childhood experiences of life-threatening health problems

At the end of her video, Michelle put on a brave face and said she was ‘healing’, as she said: ‘All of this f***ing sucks but I always say this or something better. So I guess I’m due something better’

Alongside an old video of herself talking about how to have a confident mindset to end jealously, she said: ‘And yes I know a lot of my posts are deeply ironic now.

‘The hazard of posting online but at least you can’t say I don’t practice what I preach. Good riddance exactly.’  

In the previous video she had said: ‘I’ve never understood jealously, I always find it a compliment because if someone is hitting on someone I’m with I’m like, cute – you can try, won’t happen.’

‘And you know what, even if it does happen? Good riddance. Thanks for taking him off my hands.’

The author also posted a conversation with a friend where her pal had joked ‘at least he won’t cheat on you’, telling the influencer she had gone for a ‘safe option’ in her partner. 

Michelle became a motivational coach after living through her own childhood experiences of life-threatening health problems, long stays in hospital and fifteen complex surgeries that left her scarred, both mentally and physically.

She had a brain tumour, a punctured intestine, an obstructed bowel, a cyst in her brain and a condition called hydrocephalus – where fluid builds up in the brain, causing, dangerous pressure that can be fatal if untreated.

Explaining her absence from social media, Michelle began: ‘I don’t know how to make this video so I’m just going to get into it. The last you heard from me I was engaged and I’m not anymore.

The writer also revealed that the couple had been trying for a baby for several months before they had split, and said she had begun dating while away

Michelle later took to her Instagram Stories to thank her followers for their outpouring of support and reveal that the couple had been trying for a baby for several months before they had split

Michelle – who kept her ex-boyfriend’s identity private until their engagement – also asked her followers not to try and track him down, saying she had forgiven him almost ‘instantly’ as while their relationship was over, she still loved him

‘The day I posted that engagement photo is the day I found out he had been cheating on me and one of the women he was cheating on me with actually followed me and that’s how I found out.

‘She’s a lovely woman, and she didn’t know, and you’ve got to love his taste in women. You’ve got to laugh. We’re laughing and crying a lot over here.’

She continued: ‘The main thing people always say with cheating is “Did you know?” And obviously not because I said yes to marrying him.

‘But also does it matter? I think what I’ve realised through all of this is if someone wants to actively deceive you they will.

‘When it comes to life coaches there’s this illusion that we’re perfect, we’re all knowing or that we have our lives together and it’s just not true.

‘I’ve always said I’m just five steps ahead and that’s how I am able to teach other people.

‘The only difference is I have all the tools and resources to make sure I’m okay right now and that I know I’m going to learn from this.’

Breaking into tears, she added: ‘My own life coach says we never let a good crisis go to waste, and this is a crisis. I think I am a good life coach because I f*** up more than you and I learn from it.’

Michelle, who has received a wealth of support since making her announcement, later took to Instagram to discuss the split further

Michelle also posted a screenshot of a conversation with a friend, where she joked about the title of a book she should write about the situation

Michelle became a motivational coach after living through her own childhood experiences of life-threatening health problems, long stays in hospital and fifteen complex surgeries that left her scarred, both mentally and physically

She then corrected her self and said: ‘Actually, let me rephrase that one because I didn’t f**k up – he did. And he ruined a really good thing. And it was a good thing – when it was good, it was really good.’

Despite her heartbreak, Michelle told a fan that she had already forgiven Ben for his deception.

She said: ‘I already do forgive him. It was pretty much instant for me because he is the person who has loved me most in the world and this has really taught me that unconditional love does exist because I do still love him.

‘The love is unconditional, the relationship is not and I won’t be staying but I do forgive him. I’ve been comparing it to a bank account. 

‘All the love he has poured into me in the last three years has put coins in the bank, his cheating drained the bank account but I’m not leaving the relationship in debt.’ 

Michelle later took to her Instagram Stories to thank her followers for their outpouring of support with a selfie, and explained that she was on a solo holiday.

The writer also revealed that the couple had been trying for a baby for several months before they had split, and said she had begun dating while away.

She wrote: ‘I’m so overcome by all the love. Thank you for all the kindness. Do you remember when I said I was going to book a solo trip?

‘The part I didn’t tell you is because we had been trying for a bay for three months so I wanted to do it before I was pregnant.

‘So I’m on the solo trip now. Coming back tomorrow. Grateful I’m not pregnant and also have gone on dates while here.’

Michelle became a motivational coach after living through her own childhood experiences of life-threatening health problems, long stays in hospital and fifteen complex surgeries that left her scarred, both mentally and physically.

She had a brain tumour, a punctured intestine, an obstructed bowel, a cyst in her brain and a condition called hydrocephalus – where fluid builds up in the brain, causing, dangerous pressure that can be fatal if untreated.