Coleen Rooney says feud with Rebekah Vardy prompted an illness to emerge

‘It stripped me of my character and I didn’t want to socialise with people. I was completely in my own world. It was not a nice place to be,’ Rooney says of the trial

Coleen Rooney has said her anxiety from the Wagatha Christie court case caused a dormant illness to flare up.

In May 2022, the 37-year-old was sued for libel by Rebekah Vardy, the wife of the famed English soccer player Jamie. Three years prior, Rooney claimed Rebekah, her friend at the time, had leaked private stories about her to the press. Known as the “Wagatha Christie” case, British High Court Judge Mrs Justice Steyn believed Vardy to have most likely tipped off tabloids about Rooney’s personal information shared on her private Instagram account, according to The Guardian’s report.

And while Vardy continues to deny the claims against her, Mrs Justice Steyn ultimately sided with Rooney, leaving her to pay about £3m in legal fees.

Disney+ is gearing up to debut its docuseries titled The Real Wagatha Story, a view of the proceedings following Rooney and her husband Wayne throughout the trial. Ahead of the 18 October release, Rooney disclosed how months in court prompted a severe physical impact - reactive arthritis.

“It caused anxiety and there were lots of tears. I have reactive arthritis. I’ve had it previously but this situation brought it on a lot more,” she said in an excerpt. “It stripped me of my character and I didn’t want to socialise with people. I was completely in my own world. It was not a nice place to be.”

According to Mayo Clinic, reactive arthritis can cause pain, stiffness, eye inflammation, urinary problems, skin issues, and more.

“It hit home just how low I was at that time. My emotions really came out and that made the interview process quite intense, but then it was also a good chance to reflect,” Rooney continued. “I stuck to my guns from beginning to end. My story never changed from day one, and I was telling the truth.”

Rooney admitted even though the case was ruled in her favour, she’d never expected such widespread attention. “I thought there might be a few cross words said, but I didn’t think it would explode like it did,” she said.

“It consumed my life for a few years so it’s a weight off my shoulders now, and I can get back to focusing properly on my family and friends, who mean a lot to me.”

Following Mrs Justice Steyn’s decision, Vardy was less than pleased by the fact that Rooney wanted to continue talking about the situation.

“What I don’t get why you would want to keep bringing it up. It’s boring now! The public doesn’t care and neither do I. She won that’s the end of it! Be happy move on... because I know I have,” Vardy wrote on social media.