Last year, Gwen Stefani dumped her rocker husband Gavin Rossdale, of 12 years, because he was having an affair with the nanny. It’s hard enough being a working mum, even when you have the money that celebrity can afford, without doubting the fidelity of your other half to the hired help.
Stefani joined the ranks of Jude Law and Sienna Miller and Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawk (among many others) who faced the ultimate betrayal when their au pairs went beyond the call of duty. Let’s not forget Arnold Schwarzenegger’s outdoing of all the cheating Hollywood husbands, when he secretly raised a son with his housekeeper.
But sleeping with the nanny isn’t a phenomena that’s faced by celebrities alone. Real-life men are following in the footsteps of Hollywood stars, according to research by a well-known dating site for married and attached people (yes, they actually exist!). More than 80% of cheating men fantasise about the nanny and at some point have felt that she has flirted with them. The survey, conducted by the dating site Victoria Milan polled 3,652 of the its male members to find out their deepest, darkest, dirtiest thoughts about their children’s nannies.
Nine out of every 10 men polled strongly believed their wife chose an un-sexy nanny in order to reduce the chance of temptation – and is it any wonder. Unfortunately, beauty isn’t always the determinant, because according to the men who took part in the survey, a pretty face and an attractive body are not the first thing that attracts the to the nanny, it’s the “care and tenderness they display towards the man’s children”, according to 28% of cheaters surveyed.
Founder and CEO of the site, Sigurd Vedal, said the survey shows that cheating husbands – even in Hollywood – are looking for something new: “The nanny is someone new and exciting, and that turns on cheating husbands. The fact that men are most attracted to how she cares for their children shows that they are looking for someone loving. Being sexy isn’t the first thing men are looking for – and the wife makes sure there isn’t a hot nanny strutting around the house,” Mr Vedal said.
So is it all doom and gloom? Well, the stats aren’t great, but less than a third of the respondents (32%) had cheated with the nanny, but that fact that they are even members of the Victoria Milan (and probably other sites), says they are in the market to cheat anyway.
