Kelly Ripa and a 'defensive' Mark Consuelos have a hilarious discussion about 'grey divorces'

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos are discussing uncomfortable topics in their live show. The couple, who have been married for almost three decades, discussed a phenomenon known as 'grey divorce,' referring to the rising trend in couples over the age of 50 deciding to get a divorce. 

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The story was shared by Ripa on their talk show, "Live with Kelly and Mark," where she revealed that the discussion was prompted by an article that she read while she was traveling. “I started talking to Mark about it, and Mark got very defensive,” she said, prompting laughs from the audience. 

Ripa revealed that she found the topic intriguing and that it was made even better by the narrator's voice. “The astonishing rise of the gray divorce,” she said, adding a deeper voice like the narrator's. “And I was like, ‘Oh, I want one!'” 

“Like, it sounds like something amazing and then you realize this is very dark subject matter. But the voice of the narrator is so soothing."

While the article was intriguing, Ripa read through some of the highlights of why couples choose to divorce their partners after spending decades together and found that she and Consuelos have no reason to question their relationship yet. She revealed that many divorced due to having no things in common, or due to unforeseen illnesses and health changes. “You would take care of me though," said Consuelos with a smile. "Change my diapers." 

"Of course I would!" said Ripa. "I do it all the time."

© Lorenzo Bevilaqua

Consuelos' sweet celebration of Ripa's 54th birthday

This October 3rd, Consuelos celebrated Ripa's birthday with a loving post shared on his Instagram made up of various images of Ripa and the couple over the years. "Happy Birthday, Sexy! I'm so glad you were born," he captioned the montage, which was set to Madonna's "I'm Addicted."  The post contained photos of the couple enjoying themselves on the beach, their daughter Lola, and plenty of throwbacks. 

"What a beautiful sprint around the sun. The best is yet to come," he wrote. "P.S. I promise not to snore so much this year."