Olly Murs has opened up with rare emotion about the devastating rift with his twin brother — a heartbreak that has haunted him for more than 15 years and, he admits, now feels even heavier since becoming a father.
The 40-year-old singer, who shares 16-month-old daughter Madison with wife Amelia Tank and is expecting another baby, revealed that parenthood has finally helped him understand the deep sadness his mother has carried since he and his twin brother Ben Murs became estranged.
The brothers famously fell out in 2009 after Olly missed Ben’s wedding to compete in the semi-finals of The X Factor — a decision that ultimately changed their family forever.
“Now I understand my mum’s pain”
Speaking candidly in a new interview, Olly admitted that becoming a dad has brought his mother’s heartbreak into sharper focus.
“Now I’m a parent, I can relate more to my mum’s sadness that my twin brother and I have been estranged since 2009,” he said, adding quietly that he still holds “nothing but love and respect” for Ben.
But behind those measured words lies years of unresolved grief.
Olly has previously revealed that he has no idea where his brother lives, and that seeing other twins still cuts deeply.
“Seeing twins brings back memories,” he once admitted. “When we were kids, we used to sing together all the time.”
He added that the situation has been even harder for their mother, who Ben has also reportedly cut off completely.
A loneliness few can understand
The Troublemaker hitmaker has spoken before about the profound loneliness that followed the split — a pain he says only twins can truly grasp.
“When you’ve been in the womb with someone, you struggle with loneliness,” Olly said.
“I couldn’t sit in a room alone. I was desperate to be around people.”
During a three-year period of being single, Olly said he was forced to learn how to cope with that emptiness — a journey that eventually led him to Amelia, whom he now calls “the love of my life.”
“I used to think that spark people talk about was Disney rubbish,” he said. “Then it happens — and you just know.”
‘I fear the next time we meet will be at a funeral’
Despite the success, the family life, and the career highs, the wound with Ben has never healed.
“We had a massive row,” Olly once admitted.
“I honestly feel like the next time I’ll see him will be when we lose someone in the family — and I don’t want that.”
Ben, who took his wife Amy’s surname Hart after their wedding, has been brutally open about his feelings, previously branding Olly “selfish” and “a sell-out,” and saying he never wanted to speak to him again.
He even claimed that figures like Simon Cowell mattered more to Olly than family — accusations that cut deeply at the time.
Fame at a devastating cost
In 2009, Olly was forced to remain at the X Factor studios in north London, meaning he missed Ben’s wedding entirely. He went on to finish second in the competition behind Joe McElderry — a moment that launched his career, but shattered his family.
Ben later said Christmas was “never the same again” after the fallout, and claimed the family was torn apart by the show.
Olly, for his part, has always insisted the wedding was not the sole reason for the rift — suggesting deeper tensions were already at play.
“The wedding was just an excuse,” he said in a 2014 interview. “I think he had already decided he didn’t want me in his life.”
Finding brotherhood elsewhere
In the absence of his twin, Olly admits he has leaned on others for support — including Robbie Williams, whom he describes as “a big brother figure.”
“This year I’ve been touring, I’ve got a new album coming,” Olly said. “I joined Robbie on stage and it was amazing to catch up — he’s always been there for me.”
Hope — even after 15 years
Despite everything, Olly insists he has never given up hope.
When asked whether reconciliation is still possible, he replied quietly:
“Of course I hope so. Every year I think about it. Is it nine years? Ten years? Fifteen years now?”
He added: “I love my brother so much. Anything he ever needed, I’d do for him.”
For now, Olly’s focus is firmly on being a good husband and father — but the shadow of a broken twin bond still looms large.
As one close friend put it: “You can have success, love, children — but when a twin bond breaks, it leaves a scar that never really fades.”
