One of pop’s most ‘traumatic’ love scandals sparked a huge hit 10 years ago-Emily Bashforth-Entertainment – Metro

Let us revisit the love triangle that had Twitter teens hooked in 2014 (Picture: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

Cast your minds back to 2014… Ellen Degeneres tweeted her Oscars selfie, Solange and Jay-Z fought in an elevator, and Kim Kardashian balanced a champagne glass on her derrière in that photoshoot.

That’s far from all, though, as the year also bizarrely connected fans of One Direction, Ed Sheeran, and Ellie Goulding as an intriguing love triangle formed.

Enter Don’t, Ed’s smash hit single from his second studio album, X.

The chronically online among you shall recall how, at the time, speculation was rife that the songwriter, now 33, penned the tune about a romance with Lights hitmaker Ellie, 37, before she allegedly cheated on him with 1D’s Niall, 30.

Fast forward a whole decade and we’re still not sure if we can put all the pieces together- but it’s only fair we try as we revisit one of pop’s most traumatic love scandals that had Twitter teens hooked.

Don’t is a catchy guitar track that gave Ed his first top 10 in the US as he flexes his lyrical skills by penning what he’s renowned for – a hearty, autobiographical story of romance and heartache.

It’s been 10 years since Ed Sheeran released his single Don’t (Picture: John Phillips/Getty Images for Ed Sheeran)

Lyrics include: ‘I met this girl late last year / She said, “Don’t you worry if I disappear”,’ and: ‘Maybe you could swing by my room around 10 / Baby, bring the lemon and a bottle of gin / We’ll be in between the sheets ’til the late AM.’

The tune takes a turn, however, when Ed starts singing about another man, hinting that his new flame has been unfaithful.

‘But you didn’t need to take him to bed, that’s all / And I never saw him as a threat / Until you disappeared with him to have sex, of course,’ he vents.

Ed’s anger peaks as he brands the other dude in question a ‘b*****d’ and hits out at his girl, singing: ‘I wasn’t looking for a promise or commitment / But it was never just fun, and I thought you were different.’

Following the track’s release, it didn’t take long for fans to connect the dots, especially when lyrics such as, ‘It’s not like we were both on tour / We were staying on the same f***ing hotel floor’ make it pretty obvious Ellie was his inspiration.

And while Ed is never one to skirt around questions about who inspires his lyrical content, well, he was less inclined to answer this time around, but did make it known that he was aware of the discourse surrounding Don’t.

In an interview with Fuse in October 2015, Ed said: ‘Don’t is just a song that’s close to the bone and definitely opened up a door that I probably shouldn’t have opened up.

He and Ellie Goulding are long-time pals, while she maintains they never dated (Picture: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for MTV)

‘I just won’t say who it’s about because… I mean everyone, everyone f***ing knows anyway. But like I just won’t say who it’s about cause it’s quite a negative song.’

As for Niall and Ellie, the This Town hitmaker has remained silent on speculation that their fling led to Ed’s frustrated studio session, having always played coy about his love life from his early days of fame.

Ellie, on the other hand, has been vocal and always denied having anything more than a friendship with Ed.

In fact, when hand-holding photos first emerged, she tweeted (and later deleted): ‘I love that holding hands with my friends means we’re an item. In that case I am in many relationships.’

Things get complicated, however, when you consider Ed’s take on the matter, as he appeared to remember things differently, telling Clock 98.9: ‘I mean, normal people don’t hold hands if they’re just friends. It was going on [with Ellie]. And now it’s not.’

Since, Ellie has stated that she was hurt by the headlines, claiming she and Ed don’t have any beef.

Niall and Ellie went on a few days, according to the Lights hitmaker (Picture: Matt Baron/BEI/REX/Shutterstock)

The Irish heartthrob was thriving as part of One Direction at the time (Picture: Getty)

‘It’s fascinating how many people are interested in that. It happened nine years ago,’ she told the Daily Mail only last year. ‘You know, completely honestly, it caused me a lot of trauma, actually.’

Ellie added: ‘I envy the fact that my friends just spent their twenties having flings and one-night stands and what every 20-something goes through in private. But every single thing I did was written about.

‘I was made to feel like a terrible person and I really struggled with that because I know I’m not.’

According to the outlet, Ellie also believes the incident negatively impacted her career, prompting a five-year sabbatical from music.

Admitting she can ‘laugh about it now’, she explained how the ordeal ‘changed things for [her]’.

‘I became kind of reclusive. I didn’t want to perform.’

Well, while the rest of us remain enthralled by the so-called love triangle (we’re writing this article and you’re reading it), Ellie has insisted that she and Ed are on good terms.

Ellie has insisted that Niall is still a good industry pal, but the speculation that they cheated together was hurtful (Picture: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)

‘It is in the past and we’re friends. We’re adults,’ she stated.

As for any mentions of Niall, in July 2015 Ellie spoke out when word first started spreading, telling Elle that she ‘did go on a few dates with Niall, but [she] was never in a relationship with Ed.’

On the rampant headlines that there was something more sordid going on behind closed doors, she declared: ‘I have absolutely no idea where that came from and why it was turned into such a big thing.’

Ellie has since insisted that Niall is a ‘genuine friend’ and denied rumours that her tune On My Mind is about Ed.

So, there you have it, a deep dive into Don’t and the so-called romances that inspired it.

Fast forward to 2024 and all three parties have definitely moved on, as Ellie welcomed a son, Arthur Ever Winter, with Caspar Jopling in April 2021 after they tied the knot in 2019.

In February this year, though, she and Caspar confirmed their separation.

A decade later, and the star has moved on (Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Marriott International & Universal Music Group)

Meanwhile, Ed is happily settled down with childhood sweetheart Cherry Seaborn, with whom he shares two children.

As for Niall, he’s pretty private about his love life to this day, but he’s still going strong with girlfriend of three years, Amelia Woolley.

And don’t fret, Directioners, because we know some of your favourite tunes are Little Things, Moments, 18, and Over Again, all of which were written by Ed.

He and Niall are still very much great pals. In fact, the Shape Of You vocalist joined him on stage in Dublin just this weekend for a surprise duet of Little Things and Lego House.

See, it’s all rosy!

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

Entertainment – MetroRead More