Hours before Mel B bravely opened up on live TV last week about being a victim of domestic abuse, she was struck by the news that her ex-husband had jetted into the UK – and he went on to taunt her over her claims.
Mel, 45, has been promoting a powerful new video as part of a campaign to highlight domestic abuse for Woman’s Aid charity.
Her dramatic portrayal of a woman attempting to flee her violent partner mirrors the alleged abuse she claims she suffered at the hands of producer ex Stephen Belafonte during their 10-year marriage.
She claims she was choked, drugged, beaten and forced to make 20 sex tapes – all of which Stephen denies. And while she’s revealed she’s in a new relationship with someone “very kind” – Mel was haunted by her past when Stephen and the couple’s former nanny, Lorraine Giles, seemingly taunted her with news that Lorraine is creating a “tell-all” movie which could include “juicy” details of the star’s life.
Insiders tell Closer that this has shaken Mel, who worries it could ruin her new happiness and stop her from moving on from her traumatic past.
CHECK OUT Spice Girls through the years
Spice Girls through the years (slider)
1 of 18Spice Girls
The Spice Girls formed in 1994 after replying to an advert posted in a trade magazine looking for singers and dancers.
2 of 18'Wannabe'
In 1996, the Spice Girls released their debut single 'Wannabe' which reached Number 1 in the UK and was certified 2x Platinum in the UK.
3 of 18'Spice'
In November 1996, the debut album from the Spice Girls 'Spice' was released. It went to Number 1 around the world and was certified 10× Platinum in the UK.
4 of 18'2 become 1'
'2 Become 1' was the Spice Girls' first Christmas Number 1. Moving away from their upbeat pop, '2 Become 1' was a slow pop ballad, which sold over 1,200,000 copies, certifying it 2x Platinum in the UK.
5 of 18Geri Halliwell's iconic Union Jack dress
The Spice Girls gave an iconic performance at the BRIT Awards in 1997, singing 'Who Do You Think You Are' - also known as when Geri Halliwell wore THAT Union Jack dress which is influential to this day.
6 of 18'Spiceworld' (album)
'Spiceworld' was the Spice Girls' second studio album to be released in 1997. As before, it was incredibly popular and went to Number 1 around the world, selling over 1.5 million copies in the UK.
7 of 18Spice World (film)
In 1997, Spice World the film was released. The girls promoted their film at the annual Cannes film festival held in the South of France.The film starred all five members of the group along with Richard E. Grant, Claire Rushbrook, Naoko Mori, Meat Loaf, Barry Humphries, and Alan Cumming.
8 of 18'Too Much'
'Too Much' became the Spice Girls' second Christmas Number 1 in the UK. The girls' fifth single went Platinum, selling 682,000 copies and stayed at the top for two weeks.
9 of 18Geri left the Spice Girls
In May 1997, Geri left the Spice Girls. In a statement released through her solicitor, she said, "Sadly I would like to confirm that I have left the Spice Girls. This is because of differences between us. I'm sure the group will continue to be successful and I wish them all the best."
10 of 18'Goodbye'
'Goodbye' was the group's third consecutive Christmas Number 1, this time as a quartet. The girls became the first act to have three consecutive Christmas Number 1s since The Beatles in 1965.
11 of 18Spiceworld Tour
The Spice Girls took to the road on their 'Spiceworld' Tour. Starting in Ireland and the UK with Geri, in February 1998, they continued after she left at the end of May, to mainland Europe and the USA.
12 of 18Christmas in Spiceworld Tour
This eight-day tour saw the Spice Girls (without Geri) perform in Manchester and London in December 1999.
13 of 18'Forever' (album)
The Spice Girls' third and - as yet - final studio album 'Forever' was released in 2000 and spawned singles 'Goodbye' and the double A-side 'Holler'/'Let Love Lead the Way'.
14 of 18Spice Girls won multiple BRIT Awards
Over the years, the Spice Girls have won multiple BRIT Awards including Best British Single for 'Wannabe' and Best British Video for 'Say You'll Be There' in 1997. They also picked up, the Outstanding Contribution Award in 2000.
15 of 18The Return of the Spice Girls tour
In 2007, the Spice Girls reunited as a group of five, and went on their 'The Return of the Spice Girls' tour. They performed across the UK, mainland Europe and the USA.
16 of 18Spice Girls perform at the Olympics
The Spice Girls reunited once again in 2012 for the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics. Their spectacular performance saw them standing on top to black cabs whilst they were singing.
17 of 18GEM - mini reunion
In 2016, on the 20th anniversary of 'Wannabe', Emma, Mel B and Geri had a mini-reunion. They posted a video saying they would be back under a different name - GEM (named after their collective initials). Despite this video, nothing was released.
18 of 18Spice Girls reunite in 2018
Earlier this year (2018), Spice Girls fans all over the world went wild when it was confirmed that all five of the Spice Girls had met up at Geri's house, along with their former manager Simon Fuller.Since the initial meeting back in February there have been continued rumours that we could see a full reunion, new music or even a tour, however nothing has been confirmed.
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A source says, “Mel’s just got to a place where she feels happy and settled again, so the risk of having her past picked over has left her panicked.
“She doesn’t want to keep being reminded of Stephen. She’s moving forwards with her life but he seems intent on holding her back by doing things like tagging her in Instagram posts and liaising with Lorraine.
“Mel believes it’s just another form of him trying to control her. She’s scared she’ll never be allowed to move on and be happy.”
Stephen – who shares daughter Madison, nine, with Mel – travelled to the UK to accompany singer Malu Trevejo, 18, who he manages.
While he quarantined at a London hotel, Lorraine, 30 – who previously claimed she had sex with both Mel and Stephen as well as threesomes with the couple when she worked for them in LA in 2009 – teased, “Writing a movie about my Hollywood experience!! It’s juicy... Some of it is my true Hollywood experience as a nanny. It will cover what I went through coming to Hollywood seeing everything as a non-celebrity.”
Hours after dropping her bombshell, she was snapped FaceTiming Stephen during an outing in Beverly Hills. Evidence that the pair are still in touch follows reports she “gifted” him £154k after being awarded £1.2m from her defamation settlement against Mel – after the Spice Girl branded her a “prostitute”.
Stephen later shared a news article about the movie and, tagging Mel in the post, he mocked, “Ooh [poo emoji] Mel B, things might get spicy for you!” with a laughing face emoji.
It followed Mel opening up about the years of abuse and “coercive control” she suffered with Stephen.
She said, “It starts with tiny things. ‘Oh, don’t wear that dress – I’ve bought you this dress.’ And you think, ‘Oh, my god, that’s so sweet’ when actually they’re starting to take over everything… I didn’t even know what colour I liked any more because those choices were taken away from me.”
As she began to suffer physical violence, Mel – who also shares daughters Phoenix Chi, 22, with ex-husband, Jimmy Gulzar and Angel, 14, with actor Eddie Murphy, 60 – ended up taking an overdose in an attempted suicide bid in 2014.
She finally found the courage to leave Stephen in 2017 after her father Martin’s tragic death from cancer pushed her to end her suffering. She’s now rebuilding her life with her mum in Leeds.
And her new romance with an “old friend” is going well, with Mel saying, “It takes someone who is going to understand and be compassionate and take everything super-slow. I’m with someone who’s very kind. Very, very kind. And more than anything we’re really good friends from way back.”
Meanwhile, it appears Mel will reunite with her former Spice Girls bandmates for their own movie after news that all five Spices – including Victoria Beckham – will lend their voices to the animated film in which they are transformed into superheroes to mark their 25th anniversary.
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Closer recently revealed how Mel had put her long-standing feud with Posh to bed with heart-to-heart conversations in the lead-up to the reunion. Last week, Posh seemingly confirmed it by throwing her support behind Mel by retweeting her domestic violence video and writing to her, “This is so powerful and brave.”
The source adds, “Mel’s got a lot to look forward to. She’s been so excited about the prospect of working on this film with the girls and getting back out on stage again, as well as her new romance.
“She knows she’ll never fully escape her past, but she’s praying that now she’s back home with her loved ones and has that safety net around her, their support and protection will help her heal.”
Read more in this week's Closer magazine, out now