The Ultimate Sign Ty Pennington's Relationship With Andrea Bock Wasn't Going To Last
When it's revealed that a celebrity broke up with their significant other, fans often try to deduce what caused the split. Although curious netizens will never know the real reason unless the celeb announces it to the world, sometimes hindsight allows fans to see signs of an impending split that maybe didn't seem so clear before. For instance, TV host Ty Pennington was in a relationship with Andrea Bock (also known as Drea Bock) for 13 years. They dated from 1996 to 2009, and she was his manager for some of that time too. The biggest sign that could have indicated trouble for Bock and Pennington was that neither of them were interested in getting married, even after over 10 years together.
Speaking to Parade in 2008, Pennington discussed his relationship with Bock and said, "Not married, but we're still together. We're definitely a team" (via The Cinemaholic). Of course, the year after, he and Bock split.
Pennington's feelings on marriage changed due to a different relationship
Since Ty Pennington and Andrea Bock were so private about their relationship, people thought they were still dating long after they'd gone their separate ways. (Many years after their breakup, even The List wrote an article about Pennington's relationship status thinking he and Bock were still together.) Pennington finally cleared things up in an Instagram comment from June 2021.
"Andrea and I actually parted ways back in 2009 and still remain great friends," Pennington said, per People. Later that same year, Pennington and his now-wife Kellee Merrell got engaged and then married. They initially met a year after Pennington and Bock split, meeting again a decade later in 2020. While speaking to People, Pennington spoke about his relationship with Merrell and how his feelings on marriage shifted because of her.
"Luckily our paths finally crossed at the right time," Pennington said. "It's one of those things where you just feel happy being around a person. I never thought I would get married, but she changed that. Glad I waited for the one."