Sandie Shaw finally forgives husband for 'losing her fortune and leaving her in caravan'
The Eurovision winner and fashion designer Jeff Banks have finally built bridges after not speaking to each other for 50 years
Sandie Shaw has said she finally forgives her ex husband Jeff Banks, 50 years after she claims he blew her fortune and left her living in a caravan.
Eurovision winner Sandie was forced to move into a mobile home with the couple's daughter after Jeff spent her earnings on his ambitions at becoming a fashion designer after they got married, reports the Times.
Sandie, 73, achieved huge fame and success after winning the song contest in 1967 with track Puppet On A String and went on to make thousands from her music.
But a year later, Sandie says Jeff left her and their child Gracie penniless after burning through her money to support his struggling career.
After one of the frostiest splits in showbiz, Sandie says she and Jeff did not say a word to each other for decades.
Speaking on the podcast Person of Interest, which is hosted by Tom Watson, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, Sandie said: "I was completely lost. I couldn't understand why I had got myself into that situation.
"I had that old school way of thinking about marriage, like 'stand by your man', that sort of stuff.
"And I felt that when he was using all my money and losing all my money without asking me I thought that was part of being married.
"it was a real wake up call to me that that's not how it is.
"And in those days we had to you know share tax, so he was responsible for my tax,which wasn't being paid - it was just an awful time.
"When he was losing all my money without asking I thought that was part of being married. It was a real wake-up call to me that that's not how it is," she said.
Sandie said life wasn't all bad living in the caravan as she got into knitting with her mother-in-law to ease the pain of her situation.
"We used to go to a wool shop and we used to sit in the caravan and knit squares in all different colours. Rainbows colours as a sign of our hope, wishing for something to turn out OK.
"Then we sewed them all together and we made a quilt out of it, which I still have. I use it every evening when I watch the tele, I put it over my legs," she revealed.
"It is loaded with meaning - every single tear, every single piece of pain just in that. And when I have it now I think 'wow' I came from there to here. How amazing.
"It's such a long time ago now - I really learned my strengths from there. I rebuilt every single part of my life from that time," she said.
Revealing how she's finally put the troubled times behind her, Sandie says she feels 'amazingly happy' after rebuilding her life and is now speaking to Jeff again
Sandie said that she and Jeff can now speak to each other as he can no longer 'shock her.'
Sandie also said the pair have seen the 'awful sides of each other' and have put the past behind them.
Following her split from Jeff, Sandie went on to marry third husband Tony Bedford, a psychologist.
The pair tied the knot in 1982 and went on to have two children together before splitting in 1995.
Mirror Online has contacted Jeff Banks for comment.
