Rory’s public line bears a striking resemblance to the classic "It's not you, it's me" school of break-up etiquette. Wozniacki delivered a solid return, rallying the troops on Twitter with “Happy I support Liverpool right now because I know I'll never walk alone.”

It could have been handled a lot worse by both parties. They've managed to sidestep the sniggers generated by Chris and Gwyneth, for a start.

But is there ever a “good” way to call it a day? If you're the one who is ending it, can you ever dodge the "bad guy" label? Can you both come out of the situation with dignity intact?

At least Rory and Caroline made a clean break. I cringed at recent reports that Harry and Cressida were headed for a country retreat to “conclude their break-up in private”. It's never a good idea to prolong the split.

Some of my own break-ups have been like wading through treacle to freedom. I’d employ delay tactics. I’d change the boundaries so that in the end neither of us could measure up. I’d let myself be left on the hook with platitudes about it "not working right now, but maybe one day.”

So I tried to break this pattern when my last relationship ended. I cut him off completely. I asked him not to contact me and not to attempt to be friends with me. Of course, it came back to bite me a few weeks later when he tapped me on the shoulder at a cocktail party and whispered in my ear: “I thought I’d see you here.”

It had been a good idea in theory. While not alleviating the hurt, my resolution had, at least, stopped me drunk-dialling and booty-calling and texting endless sad-face emoticons. Cold turkey was exactly what I needed, and it made me realise that even if there isn't a perfect pain-free way to break-up with someone, at least there are certain things to avoid.

Do not be unclear about what you want. Do not cut them off without explanation. Do not threaten to break up in attempt to control them. Absolutely, categorically, do not have sex with them or be emotionally intimate with them after the break-up, especially if you suspect they want you back.

Repeatedly say to yourself and them, “This is not working for me. I no longer want to be in this relationship.” That’s the painful bit. But it’s certainly possible to sweeten the pill. Reassure them that you have no regrets, and do not refuse to acknowledge you've done anything wrong.

Some people call it “tact”, some people call it “lying by omission,” but I say now is not the time to throw back in their face every annoying, ugly, gross, boring, infuriating thing she has ever done in your presence. One of my break-ups descended into the realms of “I don’t love you any more. Also you pee with the door open and you eat really loudly.” In retrospect, I should have just focused on the first part.

Don’t expect it to be easy. She will probably flit between wanting you back and wanting to slash your tires. It probably wont make sense or feel fair or right or empowering for her. And however well you handle the situation, in the story that she tells her friends you will probably be the bad guy, no matter what you do.

You can't win. The older I get, the more I realise that there's no such thing as closure. I blame Friends re-runs and American self-help books for imprinting the concept of a “happy” sad-ending on my consciousness. The truth is, no one really gets over anything. We tell ourselves that we want closure, but what we actually want is to get shot of our pesky emotions, because losing something precious really, really hurts. Even if you've told me that it's not me, it's you.

So from one blonde Caroline to another, my advice for Rory is this: stock up on ice-cream and weather the storm.

The Telegraph, London