Nancy Dell'Olio starts New Year afresh by dumping pastry chef boyfriend

Sven-Goran Eriksson's former girlfriend Nancy Dell'Olio has put a fresh start to the new year, as she is back on the singles market after splitting from toyboy boyfriend James 'Jocky' Petrie.

According to friends, the 50-year-old dumped the pastry chef, who is 16 years her junior, just before they were due to celebrate New Year together in Scotland.

"Jocky invited Nancy to spend Hogmanay with him but at the last minute she cancelled and said she wanted to cool things," the Daily Mail quoted a friend as saying.

"She had a moment of realisation and decided that she didn't want to start 2012 with him.

"It was harsh dumping him before New Year's Eve, but Nancy doesn't mince her words once she's made up her mind.

The 'Strictly Come Dancing' star started stepping out with the Scotsman, who works at Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck restaurant, in October after her short-lived romance with veteran theatre director Trevor Nunn.

The pair met through friends and Dell'Olio boasted that she had bagged the "sweetest" chef in the country.

Sources close to the dancing star claim that she misses Nunn, 72.

"She still has strong feelings for Trevor and will be seeing his latest play this weekend.

"But at the moment Nancy is focused on the upcoming Strictly Come Dancing tour which opens in Birmingham on Friday - and she was wants to do things in style," the friend added. (ANI)