Martha Stewart's Ex Husband Had A Scandalous Age-Gap Affair With Her Assistant: Inside The Drama

Martha Stewart still seems to hold a slight grudge against her ex-husband, Andrew Stewart, for ruining their 27-year-long marriage. Her Netflix documentary, "Martha," made sure the world didn't forget about it, either. The documentary, which was released on October 30, 2024, did a deep dive into Martha's life and legacy, and it would've been hard to talk about either without looking inside her tumultuous marriage to Andrew. Given their history, it's easy to see why their divorce would still sting a bit, even decades later. The two met on a blind date when Martha was 19 and Andrew was 23. They hit it off quickly, with Martha sharing in the documentary that she lost her virginity to her ex back then (via People). They tied the knot quickly in 1961 after just a year of dating.

However, their relationship ended when Andrew was caught cheating on Martha in the 1980s. His mistress at the time was Robyn Fairclough, who worked for Martha as her personal assistant. An aspiring florist, Fairclough was in charge of arranging and prepping the celebrity cook's flowers. Unfortunately, Martha made the mistake of inviting Fairclough to live with her and Andrew after Fairclough lost her own apartment. "When I was traveling, Andy started up with her," Martha said in the documentary (via the New York Post). "It was like I put out a snack for Andy." At the time, Fairclough was 21 years younger than Andrew.

After Martha discovered her ex-husband's infidelity, she unraveled along with Andrew's devastating secret. "She would be frantic. Migraines and sleeplessness," Martha's friend Kathy Tatlock said. "At one point she showed me where she tore her hair out of her own head. She was mean to her staff." Eventually, Martha took her anger out on the people who actually caused it: she kicked Fairclough out of her house and then divorced Andrew in 1990. 

According to Martha Stewart, Robyn Fairclough wasn't the first woman Andrew Stewart had an affair with while they were married. However, Fairclough was definitely the last. Up until then, Martha suspected that Andrew was having affairs with multiple women due to an unhappy married life. But Martha admitted she wasn't a saint in their relationship either, as she gave into temptation as well.

While exploring a romantic area in Italy by herself when she was 19, Martha formed an immediate bond with a stranger. "He didn't know I was married. I was this waif of a girl hanging out in the cathedral on Easter Eve," she said in the "Martha" documentary (via Marie Claire). "He was emotional. I was emotional. It's just because it was an emotional place. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced." Although the two strangers would eventually share a kiss, Martha seemed hesitant to label what happened that fateful night as a true affair — at least not to the degree of Andrew's infidelity. "It was just emotional, of the moment. That's how I looked at it," she said.

Decades after their divorce, Martha and Andrew have lived two completely different lives. Andrew married Shyla Nelson Stewart in 2016, and the pair have five children and three grandchildren together. Meanwhile, Martha never remarried, but has dated a few potential suitors in the past like actor Anthony Hopkins. Sadly, Martha and Andrew haven't mended fences with each other, and it's unlikely they ever will; the pair haven't spoken to each other at all since finalizing their divorce.