This year has seen the end of yet another celebrity marriage we thought would last for many more years to come. Fergie and Josh Duhamel have announced that they are going their separate ways after being wed over eight and a half years. Though it looks like they'll always be a close family unit.

Fergie and Josh Duhamel at Tom Ford 2015 Autumn/Winter showFergie and Josh Duhamel at Tom Ford 2015 Autumn/Winter show

Fergie and Josh revealed in a statement that they had actually decided to separate several months ago, but didn't want to tell the world before their 4-year-old son Axl had time to adjust to the new circumstances. It's a sad turn of events, but an amicable one nonetheless.

'With absolute love and respect we decided to separate as a couple earlier this year', the couple told People in a statement. 'To give our family the best opportunity to adjust, we wanted to keep this a private matter before sharing it with the public. We are and will always be united in our support of each other and our family.'

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It was actually only in January when they celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary, posting family beach shots on Instagram with Josh captioning one picture: '8 years!! Love you babe.' Then in June, he posted a photo from a lake side day out with the family, only days before sharing a back shot of Fergie performing with a caption that suggested they were still going strong. 'Damn you rocked it tonight babe. #hellofuture', he wrote.

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But as great as things seemed on the surface, there must have been some underlying issues for them to decide to break away from each other. They are only the latest in a string of celebrity marriages that have gone down the pan this year including Janet Jackson and Wissam Al Mana, Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor, Chris Pratt and Anna Faris, and Scarlett Johansson and Romain Dauriac.