Gareth Gates has made it all the way to the final of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins and fans will see him endure some hideous challenges before the 2023 season finally ends.
The 39-year-old singer first made it into the public consciousness when he was the runner up on ITV talent show Pop Idol back in 2002, when he was just 17 years old. The show catapulted him into the spotlight – and with the fame and attention came a huge interest in his dating life.
Fans were shocked to learn he lost his virginity to a certain glamour model named Jordan, now known as Katie Price, and later he seemed to find true love with a dancer. But his romantic life has been almost as punishing as the challenges he has faced on Channel 4’s intensive military training reality show.
While Gareth has said the last episode of the 2023 season of Who Dares Wins was ‘definitely the worst experience of my life’, we re-examine the highs and crushing lows of his love life. Here are the main details of Gareth’s colourful love life.
Katie Price
Katie Price spared no detail when she gave a very graphic account of her nights of passion with Gareth when she published her autobiography, Being Jordan, in 2005. The glamour model, who is six years older than Gareth, told the world how she took his virginity when he was just 17 and while she was six months pregnant with her first child.
Helen Flanagan battles to save NYE plans after 'poo explosion' in her carKatie shared all the stomach churning details – but Gareth denied everything. Explaining why he lied about having sex with the star, he said in 2013: “I denied the whole Jordan thing because I was 17, I didn't want my family to find out about my sex life. If I hadn't of lied it wouldn't have been a big deal, my family, friends and fans wouldn't have felt as let down I guess.”
He added: “For me I was very young, I had to say I don't want to have a long term relationship at this age, so she sold the story, and I said it was all lies. The only thing I thought in my head to do was say it had never happened, I felt I had to because I didn't want my family to know about my sex life, I didn't tell anyone my family or friends, so they all backed me.“
Suzanne Mole
While Katie may have been the first to sleep with Gareth, it was Suzanne Mole who was the first to call him her husband. The couple first met back in 2002 as she was a dancer at the Record of the Year awards and they struck up a romance soon after.
Gareth got down on one knee to propose in 2007 and they tied-the-knot the following year. They then welcomed a daughter named Missy in April 2009 – but sadly the marriage was not to last.
The couple explosively split in 2012 amid rumours that he had engaged in an affair with Coronation Street star Faye Brooks while they were both starring in a stage production of Legally Blonde. The singer went on to announce his marriage was over.
He said in a statement: “Despite our efforts over the past three years to make our marriage work, sadly Suzanne and I have decided to separate. Whilst we have grown apart, we love and cherish our wonderful daughter Missy and together we will prioritise her happy upbringing.”
Faye Brookes
Just 10 months after his marriage to Suzanne collapsed, Gareth made his first public appearance alongside former Corrie star Faye. The couple seemed to fall for each other hard and drifted into a blissful romance.
Faye told the Manchester Evening News in 2015: “From the moment I met him he was writing songs for me... it’s beautiful” and said the romance was "like no other”. Gareth even proposed to her, with the couple becoming engaged in January 2019 – but just seven months later, it was all over with rumours claiming that jealousy over differing career success levels was to blame for the split.
A source close to the couple told Manchester Evening News at the time: “Faye and Gareth are both extremely sad about their relationship ending. They still care very much about each other and want to remain friends, but the wedding has been called off.“
Chloe McLennan
Gareth’s next major girlfriend was DJ Chloe McLennan. The Pop Idol star had met the DJ in Ibiza not long after his split from Faye and they sparked up a relationship in 2020.
Stalking terror rocks Coronation Street as barmaid targetedBut this romance was not to last and came to a crashing end after just two years – with Gareth bitterly unfollowing Chloe on social media as news of their split erupted. The pair reportedly struggled through a rift in their romance before deciding to throw in the towel, with news of their split breaking a month after it happened.
The split was reported in December 2022, with a source telling The Sun: “The writing was on the wall for some time, and it became clear there was trouble between them as Gareth has not liked or commented on any of Chloe's pictures since November 11th.”
Allana Taylor
Gareth and latest girlfriend Allana Taylor have been happily dating for most of this year. Reports revealed the couple met during pantomime during the 2022 festive season and embarked on a romance soon after.
Gareth and Allana – who is a West End actress and is starred in a production of Grease at the Dominion Theatre in London this year – went Instagram official in July; confirming their romance to fans and the world. The image showed Gareth pressing a kiss against Allana’s cheek while she flashed a dazzling smile.
He captured the image and added the caption: “A heart full of love” along with a white heart emoji. While Allana has shared snaps of them together - with one photo of them wearing formal wear together that she captioned: ”Found my one.”