Vinnie Jones credits new girlfriend Emma Ford with keeping him healthy - five years after the tragic death of his wife Tanya

Vinnie Jones has credited his new girlfriend Emma Ford with keeping him healthy as he declared she was a 'good chef'.

The footballer-turned-Hollywood hard man, 59, looked happier than ever on Wednesday as the pair made their first public appearance at his West End debut of Only Fools and Horses at the Eventim Apollo.

And speaking exclusively at the show, which runs until January 5, Vinnie gave an insight into life with Emma as he told how she keeps keep him in good health.

When asked how he keeps in good shape, Vinnie revealed that it wasn't daily exercise that kept him trim, but rather a good diet.

He told MailOnline: 'I just watch my food. I don’t eat crap - I eat healthy'.

Then pointing to Emma, who he affectionately calls 'Blondie', he added: 'and I’ve got a good chef'.

Emma, who was a racy model and star of noughties lads channel Men & Motors, herself lives a healthier lifestyle, having quit drinking after years of hard working and partying in LA - while her new partner has marked 12 years of sobriety. 

The couple, who met in 2022 when Vinnie employed Emma to be his PA, looked loved-up during the night out as Vinnie wrapped an arm around his partner and Emma placed a caring hand on his chest. 

The new couple were brought together by the pandemic and Vinnie's farm in West Sussex - and she also became a star of the documentary series about his new rural life that aired on Discovery+ last November. 

Vinnie's late wife Tanya, who he married in 1994, tragically diagnosed with skin cancer in 2013, passing away six years later in 2019 after it spread to her brain.

The actor has taken on notorious gangster Danny Driscoll in the West End and will star in 28 shows at London's Hammersmith Eventim Apollo.

Last month, the TV star revealed that Emma had 'promised his late wife Tanya she would look after him' - as he admitted she wouldn't want him to be alone. 

'She said to me that she had had a chat with Tanz and said, "I'm going to look after him for you",' he said. 'That was kind of a defining moment for me.'

Speaking to The Sunday Times, Vinnie admitted Tanya would have wanted him to be happy and find a new partner.  

He said: 'I'm at peace because does she want you to be on your own? No, because you're not going to be happy.'

Vinnie became a stepfather to his childhood next-door neighbour Tanya's daughter Kayley when the pair tied the knot in 1994.  

But tragically she was diagnosed with cancer in 2013, and later died at the age of 53 in 2019.

Vinnie and Tanya could not have been more different, which made their love story all the more extraordinary.

He was the former football hard-man turned film star, a tattoo enthusiast with a temper so explosive he's bitten into noses, brandished shotguns - at himself and others - and has been in endless fracas on the football pitch, in bars and even on aircrafts.

However, Tanya was never the object of his ire - and Vinnie has in fact before credited her for 'saving him'.

'I take my strength from Tanya,' he said of her previously. 'She has given me stability and it is my responsibility to be there for her. She's the most incredible person. We're the perfect match and I was lucky to find her.'