Since she became a mum four years ago to son Bear, Cheryl has largely taken a backseat from showbiz, even hinting in 2018 that she could retire from music completely.
During her last major television appearance in 2019, as a judge on BBC’s The Greatest Dancer, she became close friends with fellow captain and US choreographer, Todrick Hall.
And now Todrick, 36, tells Closer that he grew close to the “down-to-earth” star during their time on the show. He says, “Cheryl is so real, which you hardly find in this industry – what you see is what you get. There’s not a lot of people that I meet that are the same on and off camera. She is just really down to earth. The moment I met her I fell for her and felt we had known each other for years – we’d even be finishing each other’s sentences.”
Todrick, who went public with his new boyfriend, model David Borum, in May, added, “I’ve never truly had a crush on a girl but if I did, it would be Cheryl!”
Cheryl, 37, has been single since she split from Bear’s dad, Liam Payne, in 2018. Although there had been growing speculation that she would reunite with the former One Direction star following his recent split with ex-fiancée Maya Henry, it seems Liam and the model are now back on.
Meanwhile, Todrick – who stars on the new series of MTV Cribs – gave Closer an insight into Cheryl and Bear’s home life at their mansion in Buckinghamshire.
He says, “Cheryl’s such a great mum. When I went to her house and hung out with them, I got to see him [Bear] singing to one of my songs – he knew every single word and all the choreography by heart.
“He’s a little baby genius, and it’s so awesome to watch Cheryl in mommy mode. He’s the most gorgeous child I have ever seen. I want to create my own Bear!”
Check out: a look back at Cheryl's dating history from Ashley Cole to Liam Payne
Cheryl relationship timeline - slider with cover pic
1 of 12Swipe through to see Cheryl's relationship history...
2 of 122004-2010: Ashley Cole
Not long into her rise to fame, Cheryl started dating England footballer Ashley Cole, even attending the World Cup with the likes of Victoria Beckham and Coleen Rooney. Clearly smitten, the loved-up pair got married in 2016, penning a six-figure magazine deal at the time.
3 of 122004-2010: Ashley Cole
However, things started to turn sour for the 'golden couple' when Ashley was accused of 'cheating' on Cheryl just months after their wedding. Despite forgiving the footballer, Ashley continued with his ways, with allegations that he'd been unfaithful rocking their romance yet again. Everything got too much for Chez in 2010, when she filed for divorce from Ashley.
4 of 122010-2011: Derek Hough
Cheryl first met professional dancer Derek Hough whilst the pair filmed the music video for her hit track 'Parachute', and it seems they immediately hit it off. The former X Factor judge contracted Malaria in 2010, and she later told Piers Morgan, "I owe my life to Derek... if it wasn't for him I'd be dead."
5 of 122010-2011: Derek Hough
Despite this, it seems the pair were destined to just be friends, with Derek later revealing to the media, "We dated for a while. Absolutely we are still friends, we are still very close."
6 of 122012-2013: Tre Holloway
It seems Cheryl had quite a thing for professional dancers, as her next boyfriend was the super handsome Tre Holloway. Despite first meeting each other on The X Factor in 2010, the pair didn't grow close until 2012, with Cheryl enlisting Tre's dancing skills for her 'Ghetto Baby' music video.
7 of 122012-2013: Tre Holloway
Things seemed to be getting serious between the two, especially when Tre starred in Cheryl's ITV2 documentary. However, the long-distance relationship didn't work out, with the couple calling it quits in 2013. Speaking at the time, Tre said, "She's an amazing person, an amazing woman, and we are good friends."
8 of 122014-2016: Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini
It looked like Cheryl had found 'the one' when she met French businessman Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini in 2014. Only three months into their romance, Cheryl shocked her fans by announcing she'd married JB, in a secret beach location with her close family and friends.
9 of 122014-2016: Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini
After her second marriage, rumours of tension between Cheryl and JB started to arise, with the couple being pictured looking glum on more than one occasion. 18 months after their whirlwind wedding, Cheryl and JB were granted a quickie divorce in October 2018.
10 of 122016-2018: Liam Payne
Shortly after Cheryl divorced JB, she singer shocked the showbiz world in 2016, when she confirmed she was dating One Direction singer Liam Payne. Despite the pair having a 10-year age gap, and originally meeting when Liam was just 14-years-old on The X Factor, Cheryl and Liam instantly hit it off, posting a number of adorable snaps together.
11 of 122016-2018: Liam Payne
After what was the worst kept pregnancy secret of the decade, Cheryl and Liam welcomed a baby boy into the world in March 2017, settling on the name Bear Grey Payne.
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12 of 122016-2018: Liam Payne
Split rumours started to hit the pair in early 2018, but Cheryl and Liam were quick to shut them down, putting on a very loved-up display at the 2018 BRIT Awards. However, just five months later, the couple released a joint statement admitting they've decided to separate. Despite this, the pair remain good friends and co-parent baby Bear.
The Texan-born choreographer rose to fame on American Idol in 2009, and has worked on RuPaul’s Drag Race as well as performing in Broadway musicals Chicago and Kinky Boots.
He’s also formed an A-list friendship circle, which includes close pals Cara Delevingne and Taylor Swift. He starred in Taylor’s Look What You Made Me Do video and helped produce the video for You Need To Calm Down, which earned two VMA awards in 2019.
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Todrick says, “The way Taylor treats her employees, and to see how close her family is and how supportive they are, is really inspiring.
“She’s really involved in the lives of all her dancers and her back-up singers. She takes care of her crew – even when everything shut down [due to the pandemic]. It’s not my place to speak about it, but if people knew the ridiculously kind things she did behind the scenes, they’d be blown away.
“She would never talk about it because that’s not the reason she’s doing it – she’s just an incredible person who is always doing kind things for people around the clock.”
Watch MTV Cribs, Mondays at 8pm on MTV.