Helen Flanagan's 'missing millions' as distraught star forced to sell 'forever' home

Helen Flanagan was a successful actor and model in her own right before reaching WAG status with her ex Scott Sinclair, boasting an alleged £3.5 million-a-year fortune at the height of her career.

When the couple moved in together and Scott proposed in 2018, the beloved star was elated. But three children and a broken engagement later, Helen's once picture-perfect life has changed drastically in recent years, leaving fans concerned as she bravely shares her struggles.

This week Helen revealed how she forced to sell the eight-bedroom house she purchased with her footballer ex, as she could no longer afford the upkeep. The news came after she was hit by a driving ban when cameras clocked her Audi speeding twice in June last year. She was banned for driving despite pleas to the magistrate in January that it would cause her "exceptional hardship" - as she would struggle to afford the taxis she'd need to use for her children.

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The mother-of-three said she was "struggling" financially and would not be able to afford taxis to take her youngest son Charlie to nursery. She added: "I think there might be a perception maybe that I would easily be able to afford a driver but that's quite far from the case. I've got enough money in my account to pay off my tax and my VAT and basically that's about it."

When asked, she said an Uber to the nursery cost about £10: "If I was doing that all the time it would be very, very expensive for me," the reports. She added she also needed the car to take children meet her ex-partner, footballer Scott Sinclair, at a service station in Birmingham when the children went to stay with him. Asked if she had spoken to Sinclair about whether other arrangements could be made when he saw their children, Flanagan said: "No, I haven't. I've got a very difficult relationship with my ex-partner. It's very, very draining."

The Corrie star's defence lawyer told the Magistrate: "She is a single mother of three children and she is doing her best. I would invite you to look at this case on the cold, hard facts of who is in front of you and I would invite you to find that exceptional hardship is a real possibility."

So how did the soap star's fairytale life sour? Helen has been very open about her hardships since the devastating split and often opens up about her mental health. Her showbiz career began when she aged just four - appearing in TV adverts for the likes of Fairy Liquid and Daz before being cast as Rosie Webster in soa in 2000 - the eldest daughter of Kevin (Michael Le Vell) and Sally ().

Aged nine - the child star immediately stood out - despite some initially mundane scenes that saw her and younger sister Sophie (later played by Brooke Vincent) either being called downstairs for tea or sent upstairs to their room. Even for this - her earnings were an estimated £400 per episode, according to

As Rosie hit her late teens so did the juicy storylines. This included blackmailing her mum when she discovered she was having an affair and most famously when student Rosie began an affair with teacher and serial killer John Stape. She was nominated in 2006 for ‘Best Dramatic Performance from a Young Actor’ and ‘Villain of the Year’ in 2007.

Within a couple of years, she achieved happiness in her personal life when she started dated Scott Sinclair. Scott, who was playing for at the time, was on a hefty weekly wage. Her enviable status as a want-for-nothing WAG who also had her own successful career seemed sealed when the couple got engaged in 2018.

Due to her stunning looks and star power she was in big demand for other media work so she took a break from the cobbles. Later she was paid big bucks to appear in in 2012, with some news outlets reporting payment to be well over the one million mark.

For the next few years savvy Helen appeared on numerous shows including and Celebrity Juice and, Eight Out of Ten Cats and her rising profile meant there was ever increasing endorsement work on offer. Meanwhile Scott, now a Man City midfielder, was earning around £55,000 a week and the glam couple were regulars on showbiz magazine covers, giving interviews on their luxury home - and happy family life.

Their first child Matilda was born in 2015. After this, they moved to whilst Scott was playing football for Celtic. As a 'yummy mummy' influencer, Helen saw her social media followers increase and she racked over a million fans. In 2017 she returned to Corrie as Rosie.

According to her annual personal income was estimated to be around £500,000 when in 2018, while Helen was pregnant, Scott proposed with an extravagant diamond ring while the pair enjoyed a family holiday at Paris

A few months later they welcomed second child Delilah in June 2018. They later moved to near Bolton, Greater in 2021 paying £840,000 in cash for their forever home - with third baby Charlie born on Scott's 32nd birthday

But just a year later the fairytale was over and there was no dream wedding. The couple separated in June 2022. The pair had reportedly hit a "rough patch" over the summer and Helen was then first pictured without her engagement ring on the red carpet at the that October. Helen blamed Scott's inability to deal with her mental health problems for the break-up of their family - she was diagnosed with ADHD but she continued to work, juggling her role as a single mother with media gigs.

Last year Helen bravely revealed that she suffered a "very scary" episode of psychosis after a "bad reaction" to ADHD medication. The star explained she had been "emotionally struggling" after splitting with her long-term partner.

Back in 2023, she was paid an estimated £300,000 to return to the I’m A Celebrity jungle, this time in South Africa, for just two weeks. But the star still appears to be struggling financially. Apart from I'm A Celeb - her profile is now much lower and her earning opportunities fewer. But recent commercial deals incude lingerie firm Ann Summers who paid sponsored Instagram posts to her 1.1 million followers.

Her new boyfriend, former non-league footballer Robbie Talbot, is not believed to be anywhere near as financially comfortable as Helen had once been. The 34-year-old's company HJF Darling Ltd published accounts for the year to the end of August 2024 of £135,387, leaving after tax a balance of £75,615, reports.

The actress herself is frank about her monetary woes - telling the magistrate in her speeding case - she "basically had no money". These days Scott's career has also taken a turn. The 36 year old started strong at City before moving to lower paying clubs such as Preston North End - and back where he first got his big break - Bristol Rovers.

There is now the possibility of relegation from the third tier of professional football with his best playing days well behind him. He now earns an estimated £2,600 a week - just 5% of what he was paid 12 years ago. And not enough to uphold the lavish lifestyle he and Helen once enjoyed.

On her downsizing reality Helen told the Hub podcast this week: "It actually makes me sad that I'm going to be leaving soon because I actually put so much effort into it. When we moved I put like a lot of my savings into doing the house up and making it look really beautiful. But it's a big house. It's an eight-bedroom house, which is obviously really hard to keep on top of."