Narvel Blackstock and Reba McEntire have been divorced in writing.

We were all hoping for a brief separation when Reba McEntire and Narvel Blackstock, her husband of 26 years, announced it in August. We were crossing our fingers that those two crazy youngsters could make it work.

Sadly, that was untrue, as the Queen of Country and her manager made an official breakup. Reba simply chose to casually announce the news in a comment on her Facebook page, as is her wont.

They jointly stated in a statement following their initial breakup that their professional connection would endure. “Even though their marriage is over, they still support one another. They have collaborated for 35 years and will do so going forward. They have requested that you respect their need for privacy right now.

The fact that Reba also tweeted a photo from the Starstruck Christmas party demonstrating that she and Narvel can at least be in the same room without killing one another suggests that this is the case. Well done to them. In this trying time, we wish them the best.