BEAU Ryan and former Hi-5 star Lauren Brant have been slammed on social media overnight in the wake of allegations the pair had a romantic liaison.

Brant at one point locked her Instagram account, setting it to private, after she posted a picture with her dog, which was captioned: “Who said Monday’s have to be dreaded?”

Ryan has now reportedly taken leave from Nine’s The Footy Show to spend time with his family, but a Nine spokesperson said he had not been “stood down” from the program, as previously reported.

He is yet to comment publicly on the allegations.

A Nine network source told News Corp Australia: “He has issues he is dealing with that are more important at the moment.”

The news comes after Woman’s Day ran an interview with Warren Riley, the ex-fiance of former I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here star Brant, claiming she and Ryan reportedly had an affair.

Riley, who called off his engagement to Brant in the wake of the scandal, told Woman’s Day his partner admitted to the romance which reportedly occurred back in July while she and Ryan performed together in Sydney’s production of Aladdin and his Wondrous Lamp.

Ryan married Kara Orrell, his childhood sweetheart three years ago. The pair have a two-year-old daughter Remi.

Triple M’s Grill Team weighed in on the controversy on air this morning.

“What’s not clear is whether or not Beau has definitely stood down himself or is being stood down,” said the breakfast show’s anchor, Chris Page.

“I think before we speculate on exactly what is going on with it, whether it’s right, whether it’s wrong, we’ve got to hear from all parties,” co-host Mark Geyer said.

But Matty Johns didn’t agree. “I’ll be totally honest with you, I think this is absolutely nobody’s business but Beau Ryan’s, Lauren Brandt’s and her fiance’s ... we don’t need to hear from Beau Ryan.

“I hope it was Beau Ryan’s decision to stand down [from The Footy Show] and to go away and just get out of the spotlight for a week. It should not be the decision of Channel 9, because it’s none of their business.

“It’s not as if Beau has been accused of murder here.”

In a later segment on air, Gus Worland said: “The Footy Show on Channel 9 will be going into the finals without their number one star, and that is Beau Ryan.

“It’s a sad one because obviously Beau is married with a two-year-old child and he’s not going to be on the telly for the next couple of weeks because they obviously need to have some family time.”

A devastated Riley told Woman’s Day he first learnt of the duo’s romance after he noticed Brant was behaving “differently” during a holiday in New Zealand.

When he checked her phone he says he found a message she had sent to a friend that confirmed his suspicions.

He described the feeling of reading the messages as a “punch in the stomach”.

“I felt completely sick and didn’t know what to do,” he told Woman’s Day. “Everything you plan for life ... it’s just shattering.”

Riley said when he confronted her about the relationship, she “owned up to everything”.

“She said she was planning on telling me after our New Zealand trip.”

Brant said it “meant nothing” and it happened after the pair kissed one night during rehearsals.

Riley said he had even met Ryan and spent a night bonding with him during an Aladdin cast and crew dinner.

The pair had planned to marry in September next year, but Riley packed his things and ended the relationship within a week of finding out.

“We were supposed to be together forever. She was just about to become my wife.”

Riley added that Ryan reportedly did not want to come clean to his wife about the affair in order to protect his marriage.

