Snooker champion Ronnie O'Sullivan has married actress Laila Rouass in a low-key ceremony at St George's Town Hall in Shadwell, East London, just ten months after their relationship ended.
The couple, who rekindled their romance in January, tied the knot in the bride's birthplace on Cable Street. Rouass, 54, wore an elegant silk dress paired with black cowboy boots and draped a traditional Palestinian keffiyeh over her shoulders.
O'Sullivan, 49, opted for casual attire with an open-collared navy shirt and trousers. The seven-time world champion shared the news on Instagram, writing: "We finally made it official!! Mr & Mrs O'Sullivan."
The ceremony marks the first marriage for O'Sullivan, whilst Rouass was previously married to Abdeslam Rouass from 1990 to 2003.
Laila Rouass draped a traditional Palestinian keffiyeh over her shoulders during her wedding
The Footballers' Wives actress used her wedding announcement to express solidarity with Palestine, sharing a photograph of the newlyweds covered in confetti outside the town hall.
"Palestinians have taught me so much, most importantly to honour human connection, make love your motivator and to keep refreshing it," Rouass wrote on Instagram.
"So I suppose after almost a year break...this was one way of pressing the refresh button."
The actress, who is of Moroccan and Indian heritage, concluded her post with "Free Palestine. Mrs O'Sullivan."
The couple first met in 2012 when Rouass viewed O'Sullivan's house, with his father conducting the tour. O'Sullivan subsequently asked her out through their mutual estate agent friend.
"When he said he was a snooker player I said, 'yeah but what does he do for a living?' I'd never heard of him because sport doesn't interest me at all, although Ronnie's won me over to snooker," Rouass previously revealed.
They announced their engagement in 2013 but experienced multiple separations over their 13-year relationship.
Their most recent split occurred in 2024, with Rouass confirming the break-up last December.
The actress later reflected: "Break ups can strip you down to your essence. I got through mine by using pain as fuel to take control."
Rouass chose the East End location to honour her roots and the area's history of community activism. "It was Cable Street in Shadwell where I was born and where my heart belongs," she explained in her Instagram post.
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She referenced the 1936 Battle of Cable Street, where local activists and the Jewish community united to block a planned march by Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists.
"The Battle of Cable Street was used by my father as an example of how a community rooted in justice, can bring change...that we all have a duty to fight for the freedom and rights of others," Rouass wrote.
She described the East End as "the land of the immigrants," praising its "vibrancy, diversity and working class roots."
"I was born there, I was educated there, today I was married there and I will be buried there because my roots are my roots," she declared.
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Ronnie O'Sullivan and Laila Rouass first got together back in 2012PAThe couple are reportedly planning to relocate to Dubai, with O'Sullivan selling his £2 million home in Chigwell, Essex. A source told The Sun: "The time apart gave them time to think about what they want and what is important to them — and that is being together."
"They've talked about living in Dubai, which is just a two-hour flight from where Ronnie has his snooker academy in Saudi Arabia," the source added.
O'Sullivan continues competing at the highest level in professional snooker. Rouass, known for playing doctor Sahira Shah in Holby City from 2011 to 2021, has hinted at returning to television whilst remaining active in charitable work.
Celebrity friends including Lisa Snowdon, Saira Khan and Denise Van Outen were among the first to congratulate the newlyweds on social media.
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