I’ll divorce Danny over drugs… I believed he had changed but I had wool pulled over my eyes, says Victoria Cipriani
DANNY Cipriani’s wife has filed for divorce over his drug use — and after he hitched up with a US actress.
Victoria, 42, says she “truly believed” the ladies’ man had changed after they wed.
But she says the ex-rugby ace and TV star, 36, secretly messaged other women, ate magic mushroom choc bars and took prescription drugs.
Victoria — who is filming for Netflix series Bear Hunt — said she “had the wool pulled over her eyes”.
She said she found messages from him to other women, and revealed he would take magic mushrooms from midday.
He is now dating US actress AnnaLynne McCord and mum-of-two Victoria said: “He left, I was heartbroken. Then he got together with AnnaLynne.
“I felt humiliated by him but now I want to move on with my life.
“He is so into taking psychedelics that I don’t believe he knows what is reality and what is not.”
The pair met via a mutual friend in November 2019 and Victoria said he started “love-bombing” her.
She said: “He was liking my Instagram pictures and messaging me. I went to see him and we had sex. He went to Malibu.
“We messaged a lot but then Covid hit. It was a phone relationship after that.”
Victoria discovered she was pregnant with Danny’s child, a boy.
She said: “I was shocked and I didn’t really know what to do.
“I had to tell him over the phone because he was stranded in Malibu due to lockdown.
“He said, ‘I am all in.’ He said we would raise our baby together.
“I didn’t take it to mean that we’d be in a relationship. I don’t think either of us knew what would happen. But we were both going to do our best for the baby.”
When Danny returned to the UK in May 2020, he and Victoria began living at his home in Cheltenham.
‘Step up’
She said: “When we saw each other again I was blown away with him. It was like the pregnancy made him want to be a better person. He knew he had to step up and wanted to do that for us.
“He told me everything. All about the women he has been with. It was hard to go through everything together, but it was like we both purged out what we had experienced in life.
“I started to really trust in him. It was lockdown still so it was a strange time. We were in this bubble of love.”
But Victoria also began to learn about the extent of his substance abuse, saying he would take choc bars laced with mushrooms.
She claims he spent around £400-£600 a month on the narcotics, which he usually bought on Instagram. His favourite was an LA-made bar called Fusion.
She said: “I got so sick of it. It started to upset me. Everyday he said he wouldn’t do drugs. Then by midday he’d be back on them.
He is so into taking psychedelics that I don’t believe he knows what is reality and what is not
Victoria
“The thing with Danny is, he could be on mushrooms and talking to you and you would have no idea. He functions so well on them.
“Then he has times he will take lots to get high and be on another planet. Most of the time it was taking small amounts. Constantly eating bits of the chocolate throughout the day.”
In his autobiography Who Am I? Danny — in England action, below— spoke about an episode on mushrooms in 2020 when he became convinced Victoria was trying to kill him.
Victoria added: “Danny genuinely believes it is helping him on his quest for inner peace.
‘Enough is enough’
“One day he took a large amount and just lay on the floor. I thought I would be able to help him and he said he wanted to stop taking drugs. Danny was taking loads of prescription drugs and I just said, ‘Enough is enough.’”
Tragically in June 2020 Victoria and Danny lost their baby boy, who they named River, at 23 weeks.
Fighting tears, Victoria said: “Not long after that I started IVF. Danny desperately wanted a baby. I had back-to-back IVF for 19 months.”
Victoria told how Danny bought three engagement rings and would cover her car in Post-it notes gushing about his love for her.
The pair wed in April 2021 and enjoyed lavish holidays once Covid restrictions were lifted.
She added: “He was incredibly romantic, he’d tell me he loved me every few minutes. There would be rose petals on the bed.”
But once Danny stopped playing for Bath, Victoria noticed a change in their relationship.
She said: “I found out he had a number of apps and messages to other women on his phone.
“I knew his reputation as a ladies’ man but honestly believed he had changed.”
Last November, at the Four Seasons in London, Victoria recalled the bust-up that “triggered the end”.
Everyday he said he wouldn’t do drugs. Then by midday he’d be back on them
mid
She said: “It was an event with a self-help guru. Danny was sat near women he knew from spiritual circles and I started to see more than just friendship.
“I admit I did not deal with it well. I shouted at him. I confronted the women and told them he was my husband.”
Victoria later went through his phone where she claims she found “inappropriate” and “flattering” messages to women. She said: “I was shocked, heartbroken.
“They weren’t sexts but they were telling women they were beautiful, and about the connections he felt to them. Not the kind of thing you want to read your husband sending.
“There were messages to a woman he’d met a few weeks before. I knew then it was over. I knew his reputation but thought he was a new person.
“I don’t think he was ever unfaithful to me before then. I confronted him about the messages but he dismissed me. We had a huge row and he left, taking four pairs of jogging bottoms.
“Next thing I knew he posted that we had come to an agreement to split. I couldn’t believe it.”
Danny moved out on November 11, 2023, only returning for belongings. In April he announced his relationship with 90210 star AnnaLynne, 37, writing: “My Miracle. Loving you is the easiest thing.”
He is thought to be splitting time between LA and London.
Victoria said: “I hope he finds the happiness he is searching for. I still believe he is a beautiful person. But I have said my side now so I’d like to carry on with my life. It is a new chapter and I am now talking from a place of peace and not pain.”