CHERYL Fernandez-Versini is in a secret relationship with One Direction
heart-throb Liam Payne, The Sun can reveal.
The superstars’ romance began last December after the X Factor judge decided
to divorce her husband Jean-Bernard, 35.
Liam, 22, has told friends he is “madly in love” with 32-year-old Cheryl. A
friend of the pair said: “This is the real deal.”
Love-struck Liam has a tribute to Cheryl’s rose bum tattoo inked on his hand.
It is a clear sign of the blooming romance between the One Direction hunk and
nation’s sweetheart Cheryl, who is ten years older than him.
Last night a friend of the pair revealed: “Cheryl and Liam are in a
relationship. It was unexpected but they’ve both made each other incredibly
happy”
Liam, who is worth £25million, got his tribute tattoo last month.
The superstar couple have been in a secret relationship since the end of last
year when the 32-year-old X Factor judge decided to start divorce
proceedings.
She is ending her marriage to Frenchman Jean-Bernard, 35, her husband of 19
months.
Cheryl and Liam first met five years ago when he was a fresh faced 17-year-old
auditioning for The X Factor and she was a glamorous member of the judging
panel of the ITV talent show.
At the time, Cheryl said of Liam and his bandmates: “You are great kids and I
love chatting to you backstage, you are good lads, nice lads.”
But they became friends in recent years after Cheryl signed with 1D’s
management company Modest — and because of their mutual connection to boss
Simon Cowell.
A pal explained: “Cheryl has obviously known Liam for many years.
“They’ve always got on well because they are both northern and share many of
the same interests.
“But there was never anything romantic between them in the past.
“Their relationship developed very quickly in December after the X Factor
final where One Direction gave their final performance before starting their
hiatus.”
Liam has told friends he is “madly in love” with the singer — and pals of
Cheryl believe the 1D favourite has made her happy again after she endured a
terrible 2015.
In January we told how she was divorcing him citing “unreasonable behaviour”.
But sources close to the former Girls Aloud star, who lost a dramatic amount
of weight last year, insist the relationship actually ended in August.
An insider explained: “Cheryl and JB’s marriage was over by the time he
celebrated his 35th birthday without her at the end of August. It was
obvious she had a very difficult few months and was deeply unhappy for some
time.
“But it’s not like she’s coming straight out of her marriage and into another
relationship.
“She had a number of months where she was officially married but it was
actually already over with JB for a number of months by that point.”
Friends of the couple say since she has been with Liam, Cheryl appears
transformed.A pal said: “Cheryl is like a different person. She’s carefree
and happy again. There’s a lot less stress in her life.
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“But she’s definitely not going to rush into another marriage. It’s still
early days.”
Meanwhile, Cheryl has helped Liam cope with his break from 1D.
A friend explained: “Liam was really struggling with the idea of life after
the band to begin with — being in the spotlight and that level of fame had
started to get to him.
“But he’s been so happy with Cheryl. He’s been telling people close to him
that he’s madly in love.”
The relationship may solve the mystery of who took the now infamous picture of
Cheryl last Saturday.
She was snapped lying on a bed wearing nothing but Louboutin heels and a
carefully positioned towel after a night out for London Fashion Week. It was
captioned simply “night” and sparked speculation about who could have taken
the intimate bedroom image.
Liam and Cheryl both attended the Brit Awards on Wednesday night and briefly
spoke inside the O2 Arena in London, but neither went on to any of the
after-parties.
However, Liam posted a comment on a picture Cheryl posted before the
glittering bash, saying “see you there babe” followed by a wink emoji.
Earlier in the day, Liam had posted a topless snap showing off his new toned
physique.
He told The Sun on the night: “We’ve got a lot of time on our hands these days
so I’ve got to do something. I can do 50 push ups.”
Liam was dealing with his own heartbreak before his coupling with Cheryl.
He split from his girlfriend of two years Sophia Smith in October, before 1D
performed their last tour date.
He told The Sun on Sunday at the time: “I’m absolutely devastated to have
split with Sophia. Being on the tour all this year and being away from her
was so hard. We spent so much time apart.
“But in order to do right by somebody sometimes it’s better not to do what
your heart wants, but to do what’s better for them.
“Right now I’m looking forward to some alone time to figure out who I am and
what I want to be.”
Earlier that month The Sun revealed Liam had been forced to cancel a 1D
concert in Belfast after a backstage meltdown over coping with the pressures
of fame.
Meanwhile Geordie Cheryl, who was previously married to former England
football star Ashley Cole, is believed to be negotiating her divorce from
JB.
Experts have warned that a split could cost her up to £8million if she decided
against signing a pre-nuptial agreement.
She posted on Instagram on New Year’s Day: “Bye 2015 . . . you’ve been
real!!!!! You have taught me a lot but I am happy to see the back of you!!”
Both had long line of lovers
CHERYL and Liam are rarely out of a relationship.
In 2002, aged 16, she began dating Jacob Thompson, 27, after they met on
Popstars: The Rivals.
She spent six years with footballer Ashley Cole, four of them married, before
divorcing in 2010 over his cheating.
Cheryl had a fling that year with US dancer Derek Hough after he was in one of
her music videos.
Tre Holloway, another American dancer, followed from 2012 to 2013. She wed
Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini in July, 2014 after three months together.
They announced plans to split late last year.
Liam had a three-year on-off relationship with Brit dancer Danielle Peazer
from 2010 to 2013 after they met on the X Factor.
In 2012, he went out with X Factor winner Leona Lewis, eight years his senior.
He dated childhood sweetheart Sophia Smith from 2013 to 2015 but they split
last October.
A genuine attraction
By DAN WOOTTON
ON paper, the union between Cheryl and Liam has left their close friends
genuinely stunned. No one saw it coming.
But as someone who has known them both for years, it actually makes sense.
They are both genuine folk who never expected to find international
superstardom and have struggled to cope with many of the more difficult
aspects of fame.
Both also have no interest in sleeping around — they want nothing more than to
find The One and be in a serious relationship.
Luckily, Liam is the fiercely loyal type. And he speaks English. Something her
previous husbands have struggled with.