Gary Barlow once bragged about bedding "hundreds of girl fans all over the world" at the height of his Take That fame.
He, Robbie Williams, Jason Orange, Howard Donald and Mark Owen topped the charts in the nineties and were one of the biggest boy bands of all time.
Their droves of lusty fans were adoring, but the stars were forbidden from publicly having girlfriends.
But Gary would famously break that rule after a chance meeting in 1990 when pretty dancer Dawn Andrews was hired to perform in the band's music video.
Two years later, they also bumped into each other at the 1992 Children’s Royal Variety Performance.
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Star-struck Dawn had blushed and struggled to get her words out when Gary approached her backstage to say hello - and she might have feared she'd blown it.
But as luck would have it, they would meet for the third time when Jason handpicked Dawn to join their Nobody Else tour.
At that point there had been no one special for Gary’s since he split from girlfriend Nicky Ladanowski.
It was Nicky, still on good terms with him, who first realised there was chemistry between Gary and Dawn.
His bandmates also noticed his suspiciously buff new body - said to have been for willowy dancer Dawn's benefit - and the two became inseparable on the European leg of the tour.
Dawn would later tell OK!: "He grew on me. We ate our dinner together each night and became friends first."
But when she and Gary ended up in the in the back of a van on the way home from a club, Dawn kissed him and he fell instantly in love.
"I was completely besotted straight away," he once said, admitting that in an era before texts and Facebook he would sit in his hotel room pouring his heart out in love letters.
"I really missed her and I didn't want to lose her. It sent me a bit crazy," said Frodsham-born Gary, who penned his romantic solo track Forever Love about Dawn.
Once back in Britain they moved in, and despite the no girlfriends rule, Gary took Dawn as his date to the 1996 BRITs.
But as word of their romance got out, fans started hurling abuse.
"Dawn hates attention so it was a big deal for her to date someone like me," Gary told the Daily Mail.
"Once news of our relationship got out the fans didn't respond nicely. They used to spit at her as she went in and out of concert venues."
Keen to stay in the background, Dawn quietly supported Gary through Take That's subsequent split and he popped the question at their home while waiting for a Chinese takeaway.
"Let's get married," he blurted out suddenly.
They flew to New York with his parents, Colin and Marjorie, to buy a £10,000 diamond ring at Tiffany’s and planned a grand wedding at his mansion in Cheshire.
But when Dawn fell pregnant with their first born Daniel, they settled on an intimate affair on the Caribbean island of Nevis in January 2000.
They even got matching tattoos of each others' initials on their wrists.
However, while his personal life had never been better, Gary's career was in freefall and, as Robbie's solo career soared, Gary's flopped and he was dropped by record label BMG.
He spiralled into depression, over-eating and quitting music for more than nine years in a bid to "kill off the pop star" version of himself.
It was only Gary's love for his wife and son that helped him see the light and, determined to get healthy, he devoted himself to clean living and began writing songs for other artists before Take That reunited to critical acclaim in 2006.
Meanwhile, three became four when daughter Emily arrived in 2002 followed by Daisy in 2009.
In 2009, the family suffered heartache when their fourth child, Poppy, was stillborn.
Gary released a short statement reading: "Dawn and I are devastated to announce that we've lost our baby. "Our focus now is giving [Poppy] a beautiful funeral and loving our three children with all our hearts.
"We'd ask at this painful time that our privacy be respected."
Writing in his biography A Better Me, Gary shared: "Poppy Barlow was born in the evening on Saturday, 4 August, just before nine o'clock.
"When she was born it was like a light came into the room. It was lovely, it was gorgeous, we both took turns cuddling her, and we took pictures."
He added: "It was one of the best hours of my life I’ve ever experienced in the midst of the hardest time of my life. It was very powerful, that hour was.
"Poppy looked perfect and for an hour she was alive to us. She's in your arms, this beautiful little daughter of ours, a sister to our three other children.
"Then the reality comes rushing into the room and all the air leaves your lungs. It felt like someone had a hand held tight at my throat. The nurses start hovering and they want to take her away.
"What we experienced and saw over those 24 hours no one should have to see or have to go through."
Eight days later, Take That played at the Olympic Games closing ceremony, and Gary's emotional performance of Rule the World moved audiences all over the world to tears.
On Wednesday, Gary and Dawn celebrate an incredible 22 years of marriage.
To mark the occasion, the Walk the Line judge shared some never before seen snaps of the day they met, as well as a new picture of them raising a cocktail to celebrate.
The A Million Love Songs singer captioned the post: "Happy 22nd wedding anniversary Mrs B.
"What a time we’ve had. So many adventures. 4 beautiful children. Here’s to the next 22 and beyond. Check out the pics of the day we first met – 1988!! Shocking!!"
*If you have been affected by this story, advice and support can be found at Sands (stillbirth and neonatal death charity). You can call them on 0808 164 3332 or email helpline@sands.org.uk
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch
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