Nicola Roberts rose to fame as a member of Girls Aloud in 2002 – but her action-packed life has involved far more than that.
The pop singer won a place in the TV girl group – which was created through ITV’s Popstars: The Rivals – which saw her sing alongside Cheryl and the Nadine Coyle.
Nicola’s iconic band would later spawn 20 consecutive top-ten singles – five albums and tons of critical acclaim.
Just last year, the 36-year-old singer won the first series of ITV’s The Masked Singer as Queen Bee – and she returned as a guest judge for the final of this year’s series.
To mark the return of The Masked Singer, Daily Star have dug into Nicola’s fascinating life.
Stalker hell
(Image: WireImage)
Nicola was once stalked by her former partner Carl Davies – whom she dated for 18 months.
Davies sent the singer a whopping 3,000 messages between 2012 and 2017 over sites like Twitter and Instagram.
The ex-boyfriend’s messages contained admissions of love, but others were described as “violent and threatening” – even containing veiled death threats.
Carl confessed in court to stalking and to causing annoyance and inconvenience – and was handed a 15-month suspended sentence and life-time restraining order – instructed not to contact Roberts or her family.
(Image: PA)
However, he broke the restraining order within just a few months – and the CPS apologised to Roberts in 2018 for failing to prosecute him.
Nicola said: “The messages he sent reminded me of all the terrible things that happened when we were together.”
She also revealed her disappointment at the CPS for failing to prosecute the man.
Roberts told The Sunday Times: “This is a relationship which ended 10 years ago.
“I should be able to move on from an unhealthy relationship if I want to and that has not been able to happen for me.”
Health battles
(Image: PA)
Nicola may have found fame with Girls Aloud – but it took a toll on her private life and mental health.
The singer struggled with being away from her family whilst she toured with the girl group – and she became depressed after conflicts with her boyfriend and her parents divorced.
She started spending more time at her home town in Runcorn, Cheshire – after becoming increasingly fed up with her living situation.
Nicola has also battled hypoglycemia throughout her singing career – and it made things tough when she was touring around.
(Image: PA)
Hypoglycemia is a condition which sees your blood sugar levels drop – and it restricted which kinds of food Nicola could eat.
She was diagnosed with the illness after touring – and she had been complaining about sickness and weakness which had made it hard for her to perform on stage.
She once said: “I broke down in tears before one of our shows because I felt so weak.
“I was close to fainting, but I had no idea what was wrong with me.
‘I just couldn’t stop eating and I was always hungry.”
Rihanna link
(Image: Getty Images for Savage X Fenty)
Nicola got an A-list invitation when stunning singer Rihanna chose her to co-host the Sky Living fashion show – Styled To Rock in January 2012.
She co-hosted the show with the pop goddess and fashion designer Henry Holland.
Nicola said at the time: “I am so excited to be working with Rihanna on finding a new British up and coming designer. I was so flattered when she asked me to work with her on this show.
“I’m so excited for us to get started on finding a new up and coming British designer who just needs a chance, a little bit of help in getting their skills noticed.”
It’s not the only famous singer she’s been linked to either, because she’s written songs for bands like Little Mix.
Death heartbreak
(Image: Internet Unknown)
Nicola suffered a major heartbreak after she was gifted a pet dog called Elvis.
Elvis sadly passed away whilst she was performing Girl’s Aloud’s Tangled Up Tour – just months after he was given to her.
She struggled to cope as she was on tour at the time.
Nicola has since been looking after her pet pugs – but she admitted that she’s been scared to go out and walk the pups due to her stalker ex-boyfriend.
She also revealed to The Sunday Times: “You are too scared to take the dogs out for a walk because when someone plants vicious seeds you just imagine every possible outcome.”
The Masked Singer
(Image: lilcola instagram)
Nicola became the first star in the UK to be crowned the winner of The Masked Singer.
The talent series sees anonymous celebrities dress up in quirky outfits which conceal their real identity from the public and the judges – who have to try and guess who’s under the mask.
She won as Queen Bee after performing hits like Lewis Capaldi’s Someone You Love and Whitney Houston’s Greatest Love Of All.
When she finally revealed herself on stage, judge Davina McCall cried out: “You’re amazing! Your singing – oh my gosh – has been just jaw-dropping”
Nicola had the room laughing as she admitted that it was “piping hot” in her Queen Bee suit.
The Masked Singer continues Sunday on ITV at 7.30pm
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
