How to fix a feuding friendship

As Kim Cattrall joins the cast of And Just Like That... sparking hopes of a reconciliation with her former co-stars, relationships expert Irene S Levine explains how to salvage a friendship that has run into trouble

- HANNAH BRITT

WHEN Kim Cattrall announced she was to return as Samantha Jones in the next series of And Just Like That..., Sex and the City fans were delighted.

The Canadian, 66, had skipped the first instalment of the spin-off show, with rumours rife of a fall-out between Kim and co-star Sarah Jessica Parker, 58.

But with an on-screen reunion on the cards, could the rift be over?

The signs are looking good, says psychologist and friendship expert Irene S Levine, co-producer of the Friendship Rules newsletter on Substack (irenelevine.com).

"While you may think fallouts and feuds are the preserve of children in the school playground, they are more common among adults than you think," she said.

"Thankfully, if both parties want to fight for the relationship, most are salvageable.

So why do adults fall out?

"Friendships end for a variety of reasons," said Irene. "The most common is that two friends simply drift apart because one or both of them don't have the motivation to keep up the friendship. In these situations, neither friend actively ends the friendship.