6 FEBRUARY 2003
Spring is still months away, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the way Britain's biggest heart-throbs are getting an early start on romance.

Irish quintet Westlife has had a busy year so far, with a new baby for Bryan McFadden and engagements for bandmates Shane and Nicky. And now Kian, one of the two remaining unattached Westlifers, has revealed he has a new girlfriend – none other than Atomic Kitten's Liz McClarnon.

The two, longtime friends who both recently split with their partners, connected at a New Year's party. And the rest, apparently, is history. "Kian is really lovely," Liz told the Daily Mirror. "It's early days and we're both really happy."

Meanwhile, two other music industry hunks have been bitten by the romance bug. Pop Idol bronze winner Darius Danesh has popped the question to his girlfriend Mirella Dell'Aquila, whose band won the Canadian version of Popstars. The couple are searching for a home in London, and plan to wed in the coming weeks.

And Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates is stepping out with a new girlfriend, Suzanne Mole, a music video dancer nine years his senior. However, fans of the pin-up need not be concerned because, as the chart-topping singer says, "It's not serious."