Gwen Stefani Said She Went Through 'Torture' During Her Split With Gavin Rossdale
Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale met in 1995.
They married in 2002, and share three kids.
They filed for divorce in 2015 citing irreconcilable differences.
Long before Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton were The Voice's cutest couple, No Doubt’s high-octane frontwoman was part of another one of music’s hottest pairs. Twenty-five years ago, Gwen and British singer Gavin Rossdale were rock royalty, with a musical meet-cute to boot: The pair first crossed paths when No Doubt opened for Gavin's band, Bush, in 1995.
The couple weathered two decades’ worth of ups and downs—much of which Gwen says she’s chronicled in her music—before ultimately calling it quits in August 2015, after nearly 13 years of marriage. Now, we're looking back at Gwen and Gavin’s relationship timeline—and what led to their divorce.
How Gwen and Gavin Met
Gwen, 50, and Gavin, 53, met in 1995 when No Doubt and Bush were on tour with the Goo Goo Dolls. In 2010, Gavin described their first date to Details magazine, recalling: “I threw a party in New Orleans just as an excuse to hang out with her. We drank a bunch of hurricanes and went around the French Quarter. We had our first kiss that night," he said.
Gwen and Gavin Tie the Knot
Gavin proposed to Gwen on New Year’s Day in 2002, after more than six years of dating—and after getting her father’s permission. (“He was very gracious,” Gavin told People at the time.)
The pair wed on Sept. 14, 2002, at St. Paul’s Church in London’s Covent Garden, with Gwen wearing her instantly iconic pink ombre dress, designed by John Galliano for Christian Dior.
Gwen and Gavin's Family Life
Gwen and Gavin have three children together. Their first, son Kingston James McGregor Rossdale, came in May 2006. In August 2008, the couple welcomed son Zuma Nesta Rock Rossdale, and in February 2014, Gwen gave birth to their third son, Apollo Bowie Flynn Rossdale.
Gavin made headlines in October 2004, when a paternity test revealed that he had fathered a child in 1989, now-model Daisy Lowe.
Gwen and Gavin Split
Gwen filed for divorce in August 2015, with Gavin filing his response shortly after, Los Angeles Superior Court spokeswoman Mary Hearn told The Associated Press at the time, according to CBS News. The pair cited irreconcilable differences for the split and were later granted joint custody of their sons.
In a statement to People, the exes said, “While the two of us have come to the mutual decision that we will no longer be partners in marriage, we remain partners in parenthood and are committed to jointly raising our three sons in a happy and healthy environment.”
Why Did Gwen and Gavin Divorce?
The couple’s divorce announcement came amid reports that Gavin had had an affair with the couple’s longtime nanny. While neither Gwen nor Gavin have directly addressed the reports, Gwen opened up about their split in the September 2016 issue of Cosmopolitan, saying: "Nobody except for my parents, the people involved, and whoever they told [knows the specifics about what happened with Gavin].”
“Nobody would believe it if I could really say what happened,” she added. “I went through months and months of torture.”
Though she declined to reveal any more details, the singer pointed to her music for clues. "All you have to do is listen to every single song I've ever written, and it's all there. It's an ongoing theme that I've had for a long time," she said.
Where are Gwen and Gavin now?
In November 2015, Gwen’s then-just-rumored romance with her Voice co-star Blake Shelton was officially confirmed by his rep. The news came several months after the country star finalized his own divorce from his wife of three years, fellow country singer Miranda Lambert.
Gwen told InStyle in 2018 that she’s “super in love” with Blake, 43. After nearly four years of dating, the country singer recently told Entertainment Tonight that the couple “couldn’t be happier, and we’ve never been doing better.”
For his part, Gavin told The Sun’s Fabulous magazine in January 2017 that the divorce “was completely opposite to what I wanted.” While he admitted he had regrets about his marriage with Gwen, he said there were also “a lot of positives” and he still thinks his ex-wife is “incredible.” Gavin is currently dating model Natalie Golba, 26, People reported.
You Might Also Like
