Harry Styles is the subject of most of Taylor Swift's new album
1989. Here's a complete recap of their relationship, from their first hookup in April 2012 to their current friendship.
sources: written by me using
mtv and
haylordaily, pictures:
taylorpictures.net,justjared.com
Their first hookup in April 2012
Taylor dances to What Makes You Beautiful at the Kids' Choice AwardsTaylor and Harry first met at the Kids' Choice Awards on March 31 2012. One Direction's Liam joked the following day: "I thought Harry might have went to the bathroom just a little bit when we met her." Also that week, Justin Bieber invited both Taylor and One Direction to his LA mansion, where they swam and "just hung out". Bieber told Britain's
Daily Mirror that "one of the biggest artists in the world thinks Harry is so hot, but I have been sworn to secrecy."
During an
MTV interview, One Direction teased a bashful Harry about Taylor. "Did any particular person stand out for you [at the Kids' Choice Awards]? Just so we can get your
drift ... a really
quick one." When Harry finally mentioned Taylor's name, his bandmates shouted, "Jackpot!" As the conversation moved on, Harry muttered to Louis Tomlinson: "I'm going to kill you!"
Days later, both Harry and Taylor were spotted separately at New York's Bowery Hotel. One Direction were in town for promotional duties while Taylor was on a trip with girlfriends.
In late April, One Direction began a tour of Australia and New Zealand, during which Harry revealed that he had exchanged numbers with Taylor: "We met in America. She is very talented. She's very nice ... We're friends."
Harry photographed with Emily Ostilly in New ZealandHowever, the flirtation with Taylor came to an abrupt end when Harry was photographed kissing model Emma Ostilly during a night out in Auckland, New Zealand. A Taylor friend later told
Vanity Fair that there was "a weekend where they got really close and he was all, like, 'You're amazing - I want to be with you. I want to do this.'" According to the friend, he then texted Taylor while on tour to alert her to pictures online where he was "kissing a friend good-bye." When Taylor searched for the pictures, she discovered they were "making out with like their hands all up in each other's hair."
In the following months, Harry was linked to model Cara Delevingne while Taylor enjoyed a two-month summer fling with Conor Kennedy. In a July interview, Taylor was asked to name her favorite One Direction member and jokingly replied, "How could you possibly choose?!"
They reconnect in September 2012
Harry and Taylor posed with fans at LA's Katsuya in SeptemberThe pair were next seen together on September 6 2012, when
Popstar reported that Harry and his bandmates watched Taylor's final MTV Video Music Awards rehearsal. The couple later enjoyed a post-show meal at LA's Katsuya with a group that included their mutual friend Ed Sheeran and Taylor's bandmates. They posed separately for photos with fans inside the sushi restaurant.
Taylor and her boyfriend Conor Kennedy had their final meeting on September 16. In October, a source revealed that the couple had "quietly parted ways a while ago. It was just a distance thing. No hard feelings. They're fine."
Secretly dating in October 2012
Backstage at the Radio 1 Teen AwardsOn October 7, both Taylor and Harry performed at London's Radio 1 Teen Awards. They spent a lot of time together backstage, leading radio hosts to speculate on-air about whether they were romantically involved.
The Sun reported that Taylor and a "mystery" member of One Direction had arranged to have dinner at the upmarket Luton Hoo Hotel after the concert. However, when the tabloid's Bizarre columnist received a tip about the reservation, the meal was suddenly cancelled. When One Direction were later asked about the rumor during an Irish chat show appearance, Louis Tomlinson suggested that Harry "take this one". However, Harry replied that he "didn't get asked" to dinner.
Later that month, Harry named Taylor as one of his celebrity crushes, alongside Rihanna and Rita Ora, telling
Seventeen: "Taylor’s a really lovely girl. Honestly, she couldn’t be a sweeter person. She’s a great girl and she’s extremely talented. She’s one of those people you meet [who’s] genuinely a nice person. Some people you meet and they are not as nice as you make them out to be, but she’s one of those people who’s really just amazing. She deserves everything she has.”
In an interview published at the beginning of November, Harry told
Cosmopolitan that he was currently dating someone: "There's someone I like. If you're shown in the papers with other girls when you really like someone else, that's difficult. But still, I think it's important if you're thinking about starting a relationship to do it away from the spotlight. I thought I [had a type] but this girl I like isn't my 'type'. It's more about the person. How they act, their body language, if they can laugh at themselves. I find ambition really attractive too - if someone's good at something they love doing. I want someone who is driven."
Styles was photographed wearing his necklace on October 30. By November 7, it was in Swift's possessionDuring a promotional appearance in London on November 7, Taylor was photographed wearing a silver It's A Paper Airplane chain identical to that owned by Harry, who replaced his chain with a new pendant. Also around this time, One Direction's Niall Horan told
People his favorite song of 2012 was Taylor's "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together." When asked if he would ever date Taylor, Niall gave a small laugh, looked at Harry and answered with a succinct, "no."
Relationship goes public in November 2012
Harry and Taylor backstage at The X FactorOn November 14, Harry flew from New York to LA to spend two days with Taylor. He accompanied Taylor to an LA television studio to rehearse for her X Factor performance. "He was sitting with her mum Andrea and she seemed won over too", a source told
The Sun. "After Taylor finished, he picked her up over his shoulder and carried her to her trailer. They were holding hands and flirting all day." The source continued, "Taylor was really embarassed by what happened [in April] and was nervous about giving him another go. But this time they have spent more time getting to know each other. Harry is being careful because he doesn't want to hurt her again. But he's made it clear he likes her a lot. They've been quietly seeing each other again for a little while now."
Harry and Taylor were photographed together for the first time on Decmeber 2 2012 while visiting the zoo in Central Park, New York with friends.
Later that night, they posed for photos with fans after dinner at SoHo's Bond St. restaurant, where they dined with Ed Sheeran and Harry's mother and stepfather.
On December 3, they made an apperance at the Hudson Hotel, as part of One Direction’s Madison Square Garden afterparty. They were joined for karaoke by Ed Sheeran and the rest of One Direction. They sang Dolly Parton’s “Islands In The Stream”, Elton John’s “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” and the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way”. Harry's father later tweeted that Taylor was "natural, kind and welcoming." The pair were photographed arriving at Taylor's hotel at 4am.
On December 6, they attended the birthday party of Taylor's friend Emma Stone at the Crosby Street Hotel. A source told
PEOPLE: ”Taylor and Harry were being very smoochie. They definitely looked like a couple.” They held hands and Harry seemed “really protective of her” and kept his arm around her during the party: “They’re not trying to hide it. The bar was packed.”
At Z100's Jingle Ball on December 7, Harry and Taylor watched each other's performances from side-of-stage, and kissed, hugged and danced backstage while other acts were performing. They left the event to take a red-eye flight to London on Taylor's private jet. The rest of One Direction travelled on a commercial flight.
Taylor accompanied Harry and the rest of One Direction for their promotional appearance on The X Factor Final in Manchester, England on December 10.
On December 11, Harry and Taylor had dinner at The Rising Inn in Derbyshire, England with Harry's sister and her boyfriend.
An eyewitness told
Heatworld: "Harry and Taylor were putting spoons on their noses and fooling around with each other and taking photos of each other. After that, they were stood talking and Harry kept putting his hand on Taylor’s bum. Taylor had her arms around him a lot and they were really close all night. They seemed like they got along really well and they got on with Harry’s sister and did seem like a normal couple. They were sat together opposite Harry’s sister and you could see Harry’s hand on Taylor’s lap the whole evening.” Later that evening, they were spotted grocery shopping at a nearby Tesco.
On December 12, the couple visited Bowness-on-Windermere in the Lake District. They posed for a photo with birds and stopped into the World of Beatrix Potter store. Taylor bought some soft toys, and she and Harry struck the workers as “nice and charming. They were dancing around to the seasonal music being played. Harry was being the most boisterous." Later that night, they stopped for takeout at a curry house.
On the morning of Taylor's birthday on December 13, Harry collected 23 pre-ordered cupcakes from a local bakery. Later in the afternoon, the couple left their private home in the north of England and took a drive around the English countryside, a source told
E! News. They then drove to a quaint little village called Great Budworth and stopped at the cozy George & Dragon Pub for a bite to eat. After staying there for just over an hour, Harry and Taylor could be seen laughing and joking as they headed out and drove off. That night, they stopped by Fortune City restaurant in Harry's hometown of Holmes Chapel.
On December 14, Harry drove Taylor to Manchester airport where she boarded an international flight to Germany. While there, she told an interviewer she had the "best birthday since I was about six years old."
On December 18, Taylor accompanied Harry to LA's Shamrock Tattoo Parlour, where they posed for photos with fans.
Harry and Taylor visited Taylor's mother at her house in LA on December 19
They were photographed on a skiing vacation in Park City, Utah on December 21. After a day on the slopes, the pair had dinner with friends at Grappa, where an onlooker told
Us Weekly they “looked happy and in love.”
Harry arrived in England on December 24 (and showed off his injury at a party with friends)
Harry and Taylor were photographed by fans kissing at midnight after Taylor's performance in Times Square on New Year's Eve. They were later photographed returning to their hotel and left town on Taylor's private jet early the next morning.
Break-up in January 2013
On January 3, Harry and Taylor were photographed having dinner and drinks at CocoMaya while on vacation in the British Virgin Islands's Virgin Gorda.
Us Weekly reported that the trip was a "surprise" for Taylor: "He planned it and whisked her away." After dinner, the couple returned to their boat. However, later that night, a drunk Harry "left Taylor on their boat for a few hours without telling her where he was going." When he returned, Taylor, "a former tetotaler who was also knocking back cocktails," was "crying and furious. She called him a dick and accused him of running around with girls."
Taylor left the island the following morning; first taking a boat to an larger, adjacent island and then travelling by private jet back to Los Angeles. An eyewitness at CocoMaya remarked: "I would never have guessed a break-up would come judging by their body language. Taylor constantly had her head on Harry’s shoulder. They were very close to each other the entire time and constantly leaning into each other. My sisters and I even saw them share a kiss."
At the 2013 Grammy Awards, Taylor used a British accent during her performance of We Are Never Getting Back Together. When asked for comment, Harry said: "She knows what she’s doing on stage. It was just another good Taylor Swift performance."
Harry and Taylor avoided each other at the Brit Awards in London weeks later. Asked about the possibility of running into her, Harry responded: "I’m not worried about seeing her at all. She’s a sweet girl, you know. I don’t have a bad word to say about her.” While Taylor said she "directed" her performance of I Knew You Were Trouble at Harry, he thought "her performance was really good. She looked great." Ed Sheeran joked about his awkward position at the ceremony: "I’m like Switzerland. If you talk to one about the other, the drama starts!”
In other interviews during this period, Harry said: "I can’t say I’d have dated someone less famous to avoid [having songs written about me]. I think it’s people. You like people for who they are, so I couldn’t say I want to date someone less famous because of the hassle. You like who you like. At least she’s a great songwriter! It would be hypocritical for me to say she couldn’t do it because everybody writes songs based on personal experience."
"The only time [fame] gets really annoying is that if you get into a relationship and you get into a place where you really like someone and then things are being written in the papers that affect them and how they see you. Then it can get annoying. I think relationships are hard enough, so I think you have to completely ignore everything from outside. When you’re in the opening stages of a relationship as it is, you’re still under the pressure of getting to know everything about a person. If you have a lot of people from outside telling you what it is and they don’t even know you, telling you what your relationship is, that’s weird. So I think you sort of have to block it out and just have the relationship rather than think - we’re having this relationship play out on magazine covers."
They become friends in August 2013
The Sun reported in August 2013 that the couple had put their differences behind them. While Taylor was reported by some media outlets to have whispered "Shut The Fuck Up" while Harry was on stage at the VMAs, other sources insisted Taylor was responding to her friend Selena Gomez, who said she had no chance of winning the category One Direction were announcing. Taylor was seen giving One Direction an enthusiastic standing ovatation when they won an award.
Harry and Taylor both attended an intimate afterparty hosted by mutual friend Ed Sheeran following the VMAs. Ellie Goulding, another attendee, said there was no tension between the pair and that they seemed to be "friends."
At the VMAs in August 2013In December 2013, Harry told
J17: "I think a lot of the time, you still have feelings for an ex, and sometimes it doesn't matter how long it's been. Sometimes you feel like you have unfinished stuff, and it's okay to get back together with them."
In March 2014, Taylor and Harry both attended The Weinstein Company's Pre-Oscar dinner party at the Montage Hotel. They were seen having a "friendly 10-minute chat" before the dinner. "They looked totally fine considering all their history."
Another onlooker remarked that rumors of a feud appeared to be "wide of the mark," with the couple seeming "totally cool with one another."
Also in March, Harry bought a house in the same Beverly Hills neighbourhood as Taylor.
In October 2014, Gavin DeGraw revealed he had recently written a song with Harry: "It’s called “Not Our Fault” and I think it’s a winner. It’s about… if it doesn’t work out sometimes you can’t necessarily just blame it on yourselves, you know, sometimes it’s what’s going on around you. Sometimes it’s other things that have nothing to do with the two people involved, those factors that you can’t control. It touches on that type of subject. It’s a way of saying you’re giving up, but it’s not necessarily you’re giving up because you don’t love each other."
Harry also wrote the breakup song I Love You ("I love you/ More than you think I do/ And I love you/ Now you don't want me to"), recorded by Alex and Sierra. The song has pointed references to various Taylor lyrics ("We lay there on the soft warm ground for a week and thirteen days", "You've heard all this before/ I didn't come back and I wasn't there/ I won't trouble you no more.")
While promoting
1989, Taylor said it was "a new concept for me actually, writing songs about things that have happened in romantic relationships and being able to run them past the person that they’re about."