Reba McEntire says she and her partner Rex Linn have been "pretty much inseparable" since they started dating

And Reba has now said their friendship turned romantic after Rex contacted her after her mother - who died in March 2020 - first fell ill in her battle with cancer.

She told the 'Today' show: "Rex and I have known each other since 1991 when we were in 'The Gambler' movie together with Kenny Rogers and then have known each other, kept in contact.

"And then in 2020 when Mama got sick, he called me. We'd gotten to see each other before because we're both on 'Young Sheldon'. So, starting in March of 2020, we just kept talking and visiting and finally got together, see each other in June. And we've been pretty much inseparable ever since."

Reba, 66, and Rex went on their first public date this January when they went to a theatre to watch Tom Hanks' movie 'News of the World'.

But their romance has been going strong since last year, and Reba previously said she loves having "a person to talk to" in her new beau.

In October last year, she said: "It's good to have a person to talk to, laugh with, get into subjects about what's going on. Discussions about our past, our family, funny stories, him being an actor, me being an actress. And he's very into my music. I'm very into his career.

"It's just great getting to talk to somebody who I find very interesting, very funny, very smart and is interested in me, too."