What’s REALLY going on with Shona McGarty & hunky Eastenders star Tony Discipline – as pals reveal concern about romance
The former EastEnders co-stars have set tongues wagging with a series of love-up displays, now pals tell us what is really going on between Shona McGarty and Tony Discipline
WHEN Whitney Dean began dating Tyler Moon in EastEnders, it led to one of the most tumultuous relationships in soapland history with infidelity and infighting galore.
Now, 15 years later, pals of the actors who played them are hoping that fiction doesn’t become fact – as The Sun can reveal that Shona McGarty, 34, and Tony Discipline, 37, are officially dating. But despite the happy news, there are growing concerns that the romance could be cursed.
I’m told the former co-stars began exchanging flirty DMs earlier this year before taking things offline.
A pal of the pair said: “They’ve been good friends for years. While there’s always been an attraction there, they were always in relationships.
“But after they both found themselves single, things began to heat up. They are taking things slowly and really enjoying each other’s company.
“Shona is very happy. He’s a lovely guy, and all their mutual friends think they are a fantastic match. He’s just her type.”
Last December, Shona came third on I’m A Celebrity in December and many viewers hoped that she and her rapper campmate Aitch would have their own romance following the show.
But my source tells me that was never on the cards.
“There was nothing romantic with Aitch. She saw him as a little brother,” said a pal.
“Tony, on the other hand, is all man. He’s a down-to-earth hunky fireman; can you blame her?”
Shona and Tony were first pictured together looking smitten when they both attended last month’s Women’s Football Awards.
The actress smiled as she placed a hand on her beau’s chest and later shared snaps of the pair on Instagram, describing it as a “great evening”.
Then last weekend, she put on a more amorous display with Tony at a birthday bash for EastEnders actress Lorraine Stanley held at the Ibiza-style nightclub Studio 338 in London.
My mole said: “They were both laughing and smiling all day long and couldn’t keep their hands off each other. They’re clearly in the honeymoon phase, and their friends certainly seemed to approve of the match.”
Tony, who also starred in BBC Soap Doctors, certainly seemed to enjoy himself, taking to Instagram to post about the day with red love heart emojis and posting to Shona, “Good times girl”.
It’s worlds away from their on-screen characters, who were constantly fighting. In EastEnders, Shona played Whitney Dean from 2008 to 2024, before quitting the soap to concentrate on her blossoming music career.
While Tony played Tyler Moon, the troubled son of David Essex’s Eddie Moon and cousin to the legendary Queen Vic landlord Alfie Moon, from 2011 to 2013.
Seven years later, the father-of-one quit acting to become a London fireman and has swapped scripts for weights, with the former actor clearly hitting the gym in his new career.
It’s a transformation that Shona clearly approves of after peppering photos of the muscle-bound worker with fire emojis as he wore a tight vest.
One pal said: “It is lovely how they have stayed in touch over the years and supported each other’s careers. Last year, Tony even turned to support Shona when she starred in West End musical Bettie Page.”
The new romance has certainly caught the imaginations of some of their former co-stars, and I’m told it is the talk of Elstree, where they famously film the London soap.
One insider said: “You know what the EastEnders cast are like; they love a good gossip. So when they saw the pictures of Shona and Tony, it was all anyone could talk about.
“All eyes were on Jac [Jossa] because she got there first.”
During his time on Eastenders, Tony’s character Tyler found himself bouncing between Whitney Dean, played by Shona, and Lauren Branning, played by Jacqueline Jossa.
And off-screen, Tony and Jacqueline began dating, with the pair lasting 18 months before splitting in 2013, around the time that he left the soap.
At the same time, Shona was dating another co-star Matt Lapinskas who played Tony’s on-screen brother Anthony Moon during his time on Albert Square.
Shona, who recently wowed fans with her single Unapologetically Me, has previously been unlucky in love.
She split with Lapinskas in 2013, and went on to have a long-term relationship with electrician Ryan Harris, who she got engaged to in 2018 before they split two years later.
Then in 2022, she briefly dated Max Bowden, who played Ben Mitchell in the soap, and later went on to date David Bracken, an Irish musician before calling time on the relationship last year.
My insider adds: “Of course, some are concerned. It’s not the first time Shona has dated a co-star – or him for that matter – and it’s never ended well.”
“Let’s hope this time it’s different and not a curse. Everyone wants Shona to get her fairytale ending. She really deserves it.”
Shona McGarty’s representatives were contacted for comment.
