Comedian James Acaster has revealed he found out his girlfriend Louise Ford had dumped him for Rowan Atkinson by reading it in the newspaper.

Having been an item with Louise, 36, for two years, James, 34, opened The Sun On Sunday on weekend to discover the news - which happened after Louise became close to Rowan, 64, during a play they did together.

'I got left for Mr Bean,' James said during a stand-up routine this week. 'I found out a year after we split up. I opened the newspaper and there was a full-page story. No one else in the history of time has ever been left for Mr Bean.'

Left for Mr Bean: Comedian James Acaster has revealed he found out his girlfriend Louise Ford had dumped him for Rowan Atkinson by reading it in the newspaper

James - who appears on shows such as Mock The Week and Hypothetical - noticed a distance forming between himself and Louise after she took the role alongside Rowan in Quartermaine's Terms at Wyndham's Theatre in 2013.

He was living Louise at the time - which was also after Rowan left his wife Sunetra Sastry, 62, after 24 years.

Rowan and Louise moved fast, with the actors moving in together the following year, with Louise giving birth to his third child, Isla, in December 2017. Rowan is father to Ben, 26, and Lily, 24, with ex-wife Sunetra.

James went on: 'I'm a goddamn saint to have kept this in the back pocket so long. It’s my job to say things that are funny and the funniest thing that’s ever happened to anyone, happened to me and I put it on the back-burner out of respect.

Read all about it! Having been an item with Louise, 36, for two years, James, 34, opened The Sun On Sunday on weekend to discover the news - which happened after Louise became close to Rowan, 64, during a play they did together

Co-stars: James noticed a distance forming between himself and Louise after she took the role alongside Rowan in Quartermaine's Terms at Wyndham's Theatre in 2013 [pictured]

'Until you get left for Mr Bean, you don’t realise how frequently he pops up. There’s a shop two streets from my house that sells masks of his face. There’s nowhere where I’m going to go that he’s not there.'

This comes as it was recently reported Rowan shocked friends with the news he is taking a year off from acting to focus on looking after his youngest daughter.

According to The Sun, Rowan told pals: 'I am going to take care of Baby Bean while Louise has the chance to concentrate on acting.'

The actor has starred in the lead role of Chief Inspector Jules Maigret on the ITV series Maigret from 2016 to 2018 and he also starred in Johnny English Strikes Back last year.

Louise's acting career has gone from strength to strength recently after she appeared as Kate Middleton in the royal spoof, The Windsors.

Relationship: The Mr Bean star, 64, is father to Ben and Lily with ex-wife Sunetra Sastry while his girlfriend Louise Ford, 35, gave birth to daughter Isla in December 2017

Rowan has told pals: 'I am going to take care of Baby Bean while Louise has the chance to concentrate on acting'

A source told the publication: 'Rowan has a habit of surprising people – and he has done it again with this announcement.

'He has said he will take a back seat from work to be with Isla, and this will obviously allow Louise to focus on her career which is going well.'

The insider added that it is a kind gesture from the actor as it means his other half will have more time to focus on her own burgeoning career.

Family: The insider added that it is a kind gesture from the actor as it means his other half will have more time to focus on her own burgeoning career

In 2017, it was reported that Atkinson had moved Louise into his £4.65 million cottage in North London just weeks after his divorce.

Atkinson, who attracted almost 19 million viewers in his role as Mr Bean at its peak, has amassed a fortune of an estimated £70 million.

Rowan first took on the role as an awkward secret agent alongside Natalie Imbruglia in the first installment of Johnny English in 2003.