Candace Bushnell and Charles Askegard

Former New York Observer columnist and Sex and the City authoress Candace Bushnell has filed for divorce from her husband of nine years, Charles Askegard.

Ms. Bushnell, 53, and Mr. Askegard, 43, had reportedly been on the outs for some time, reported The New York Post. She had not attended her husband's opening performance at The Joyce Theater late last month.

Said the Carrie Bradshaw scribe in a statement:

"We had some wonderful times in our nine-year marriage, and I still care about Charles as a person. I respect his desire to pursue his own happiness and hope that we will continue to be friends in the future."

Ms. Bushnell, a serial single lady, was married in 2002, in what author Jay McInerney compared to " Johnny Carson retiring.’’