MRS Julia Carling yesterday rejected the idea of getting back with her estranged husband, Will Carling, and said she had to "carry on" despite the latest claims about their marriage breakdown.
She was appearing in public hours after newspaper allegations that the England rugby captain had admitted having an affair with Princess Diana.
Mr Carling himself was refusing to comment, but both he and his wife have made known their annoyance that a "third party" - reported to be a friend - had made the claim. Mrs Carling (31), a television presenter, reportedly told the friend that her husband had finally confessed to an intimate affair with the Princess of Wales after repeatedly denying it.
Having found herself at the centre of the Carlings' public marriage dramas, the princess has made clear her reluctance to become involved any further. A spokeswoman said: "The princess feels that this is between Will and Julia Carling."
Yesterday Mrs Carling attended the Television and Radio Industries Clubs' award ceremony in London, as the TRIC satellite television personality of the year. Afterwards, asked by journalists if she and her husband would get back together again, she said emphatically: "No."
She added: "I am still married and I will be going back home to my dog."
Earlier Mr Carling issued a statement through his solicitor, Mr Hugh Young, who is handling the couple's divorce. He said: "Mr Carling believes that the breakdown of his marriage is an entirely private matter. It is my client's intention not to comment further."
A close friend of Mr Carling's said: "I think it's beyond the pale that this third party has come out with this without putting their name to it. The timing seems to be rather conspicuous, when he's back in the public arena following his announcement that he's going to retire from the captaincy of the England team.
Mr Carling has dismissed speculation that his decision to give up the captaincy had anything to do with his marriage problems.
He also said in an interview published this week that he kept seeing the princess out of sheer "stubbornness" although he refused to reveal whether there had been any romance between them.