Romance under threat: Danny Cipriani, with girlfriend Kelly Brook in January, will relocate to Australia to play with the Melbourne RebelsThey were touted as the Posh and Becks of the rugby world.
Now Danny Cipriani and Kelly Brook will follow in the Beckhams’ footsteps by leaving Britain for sunnier climes.
And the Daily Mail has learnt that Miss Brook is to join her toy-boy lover in Australia when he moves there in September. The couple will spend at least the next five months Down Under.
The couple, who had been living together in a three-bedroomed house in South West London, will head to Melbourne after Cipriani decided to leave London Wasps and instead signed a two-season contract with the Melbourne Rebels.
After the move, Miss Brook will return to Britain - conveniently missing out on the notoriously changeable weather of the Melbourne winter - purely for work commitments
A source revealed: ‘This has not been a step they have decided to take lightly.
‘But Danny realised he needed to do something radical to reignite his career.
‘Kelly, too, feels it is time for a change.'
The decision comes after speculation the couple’s romance was faltering due to the pressure of his stalled rugby career and the age gap between them.
Miss Brook, 30, - who started dating Cipriani in autumn 2008 - is eight years older than the sportsman.
A source continued: ‘Like any couple, they have the odd tiff but they are now both really excited about a bright new future on the other side of the world.’
Cipriani made the decision to quit Britain after he was frozen out of the England rugby team - with a perception from within the rugby establishment that the youngster had a high-profile lifestyle seemingly working against him.
Career girl: Kelly starred in the West End show Calendar Girls and is also appearing in the Strictly Come Dancing Live showThe source continued: ‘It’s the complete opposite of the attitude to David and Victoria Beckham when Sven-Goran Eriksson was manager of the England football team.
‘Whereas he embraced the showbusiness style, rugby is more old fashioned and many of the upper echelons resent it. But actually, Danny doesn't really go out much anyway so it's a bizarre perception. Now he just fancies a fresh start.'
The Daily Mail has learnt that Cipriani was in fact offered a higher salary to move to France's Top 14 league. But he decided he wanted a new challenge on the other side of the world.
From being golden boy of rugby when he made his debut in March 2008, he is now regarded by many commentators as England manager Martin Johnson’s sixth choice fly-half.
On the move: The Wasps player leave England after the end of the seasonCipriani will join newly formed Rugby Union team Melbourne Rebels.
Miss Brook is widely regarded as one of the nation's most beautiful women.
But she has suffered setbacks throughout her showbusiness career.
She was derided when she became a presenter on now-defunct Channel 4 show The Big Breakfast.
Her film career has been equally difficult. Indeed, Fishtales - her big-screen effort with ex-boyfriend Billy Zane - was labelled as one of the worst films ever when it came out in 2007.
And last year, she was added as a judge on Britain’s Got Talent – only to be axed within a week.
Since then, she has appeared in the West End production of Calendar Girls and is currently taking part in the touring production of Strictly Come Dancing.
Today, a spokesman for Miss Brook said: 'Kelly is delighted for Danny and will be going out to Melbourne with him. However, she will then split her time between the UK and Australia because of ongoing work commitments.'
An announcement made by Cipriani today made no reference to his personal life, but he did admit moving to Australia would be a 'challenge.'
He said: 'Leaving Wasps is very hard – this is my home, I have played here since I was 15. I see this move as the next step in my career and would never rule out coming back to play in England.
'I have some of the best coaches and players in the game around me at Wasps, which is why it has been so hard to make my decision, but I am still young enough to go away and experience something completely different.
'I want to be the best player I can be and this is a huge challenge and opportunity to test myself, on and off the pitch, because it will be changing everything I know.'
The pair first began seeing each other in September 2008 just a few weeks after Miss Brook broke up with American actor Billy Zane, 44.
She dated English actor Jason Statham for seven years before splitting in 2004.
source :dailymail
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