Delta Goodrem has returned to the spotlight in a big way, representing Australia in this year's Eurovision Song Contest with the track 'Eclipse'.
The singer, 41, is happily married to fellow musician Matthew Copley, with whom she tied the knot in Malta last summer after almost nine years of dating.
© WireImageBut Delta's first brush with marriage came in the form of former Westlife star Brian McFadden, whom she dated for seven years before they parted ways in 2011.
Love at first sight
The couple met in 2004 while recording the song 'Almost Here' for Brian’s debut solo album, Irish Son. Delta was just 20 years old and Brian had recently split from his wife Kerry Katona.
Delta was also just out of a nine-month relationship with Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis and she and Brian quickly began dating.
The attention the relationship brought was difficult for Delta to deal with in the beginning, as some saw her as coming between Brian’s relationship with Atomic Kitten star Kerry.
© Getty Images"I’m pretty sure I got voted the most hated woman in Britain one year," she told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2013.
Engagement and split
But the pair persevered and announced their engagement in 2007 and revealed their big plans for a foreign wedding, with Bali being one of the destinations they were considering.
The romance went south in the coming years, however, with Brian moving out of their shared home in the affluent Hunters Hill neighbourhood of Sydney in 2010.
They announced their split the following year in a statement reading: "Delta Goodrem and Brian McFadden regretfully announce that they are no longer engaged, and after much consideration, have mutually decided to end their relationship."
© Getty ImagesBrian had nothing but kind words to say about his ex when they parted ways, writing in a tweet: "I love Delta and always will. She is one of God’s living angels. I thank her for giving me the best years of my life."
The 'wrong relationship'
Delta later opened up about her time with Brian in her 2021 book Bridge Over Troubled Dreams and admitted she felt the relationship impacted her career.
"Getting into the wrong relationship is something almost everyone can relate to and there’s no shame in it – we’ve all been there," she wrote.
"But the choices I made at that time saw me run away from a scenario that could’ve been incredible for my career. I was only 20, 21 – still a kid, really – and I learnt the hard way that you have to be so careful about the decisions you make."
© RedfernsDelta revealed that she was "dealing with a lot", especially due to her health battle. The hit-maker was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in July 2003 when she was just 18, four months after her debut album Innocent Eyes was released.
She underwent extensive treatment, including eight months of chemotherapy and radiation, and made a full recovery from the blood cancer.
"I was also dealing with a lot at the time – my parents were going through a divorce, I’d just finished chemotherapy – and while I definitely make no excuses, because all of the choices were 100 per cent my own, I can’t help but think that being with a guy who wasn’t right for me at that time had an effect on my career."
