Andrew Tweedy will be happy. Cheryl Cole has indicated for the first time the thing we all knew was going to happen but were waiting for her to tell us -  she and Cashley are officially over.

The nation will no doubt be rejoicing and partying in the streets after their sweetheart arrived in France last night without her wedding ring.

Cheryl sent a clear message out to her soon-to-be ex-husband and the rest of the world when she arrived at French television channel Canal+ with a certain accessory missing from the third finger of her left hand.

The singer had been keeping quiet over her marital situation in recent weeks, appearing downbeat in interviews and cancelling public appearances due to an apparent case of bronchitis. However, the latest photos show her with a permanent smile, clearly happy and back to her old, nightclub-attendant assaulting sweet and innocent self.

In an interview with the insufferable Fearne Cotton on Tuesday, Cheryl hinted that she and Ashley were finished, admitting to making mistakes in the past. Fearne also made a a bit of a boo-boo live on air, warning Cheryl - who was being filmed live for Radio One - not to "make any wanker gestures or anything because people will see them on the webcam" (she obviously knows that's the natural reaction she brings out in people). Speaking about her poor decisions, Cheryl said:

"I'm still a human being so obviously there's going to be times when I make mistakes or I make a bad choice - but I'm hoping that that's also an inspiration to women"

We wonder what bad choice she could be referring to. Perhaps putting up with (and putting out for) a corrupt, cheating cock-waggler for six years.

EDIT - Cheryl's got a bit angry about ring-gate over on Twitter. Via her PR company, Supersonic, she put out the following statement:

"I just wanted to clear up the stories about whether I am wearing my wedding ring in my own words as this has been going on for too long and is getting boring. It is not some silly game I am playing. That is not me and not my style. There have been many occasions where I have not worn my wedding ring, many of those when I was pictured with Ashley. I find it crazy that people would think I use this as some sort of message. Believe it or not Ashley is fully aware of any situation going on in our personal lives. He does not need to see a picture of me moving the hair out of my face to explain anything. Please drop it."

Is that her way of telling us all to fuck off? And does this mean Colegate continues? Looks like this one's going to drag on for a lot longer than we hoped.