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Grammy-winning musician Taylor Swift's relationship with British actor Joe Alwyn was a full 180 from her days of dating Tom Hiddleston and Calvin Harris, where PDA made headlines and social media posts were the norm. Despite being together for six years, the couple kept matters private — apart from the occasional suggestive social media post or joint red carpet appearances. To catch a glimpse of the elusive Alwyn, fans dissected Swift's lyrics for any clues and watched Miss Americana frame-by-frame.
Although Swift eventually opened up a little more about their romance in interviews and songs — some of which Alwyn helped co-write — she preferred to keep her love life with the Conversations with Friends star under wraps.
"I'm aware people want to know about that side of things. I think we have been successfully very private, and that has now sunk in for people ... but I really prefer to talk about work," Swift reportedly told British Vogue (via People).
Here's a look back at Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn's relationship.
May 2, 2016: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn first meet
Many fans believe that Swift and Alwyn met at the 2016 Met Gala. Why? Her song "Dress" has the lyrics "Flashback when you met me / Your buzz cut and my hair bleached."
Swift was dating Calvin Harris at the time.
October 12, 2016: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn are first spotted together
Neither Swift nor Alwyn publicly confirmed they were seeing each other; however, fans noticed that Swift and Alwyn were both at the same Kings of Leon concert and the after-party at the Bowery Hotel in New York City.
On November 11, Swift attended the premiere of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk. Alywn starred in the film, but there was no proof the two hung out together at the event.
May 16, 2017: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn spark dating rumors
Most of Swift's fans weren't familiar with Alwyn, but he had two huge projects in the works: The Favourite and Mary Queen of Scots. Up until that point, Swift's relationships were all high-profile (see: Harry Styles, Joe Jonas, John Mayer). That was about to change.
"Taylor and Joe are the real deal, this is a very serious relationship," The Sun reported. "But after what happened with Tom Hiddleston, they were determined to keep it quiet."
June 2017: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn show rare PDA
The secretive couple were caught by the paparazzi for the very first time. Once in Nashville and, a month later, in New York City. In December, the couple engaged in some very public PDA at iHeartRadio's Jingle Ball in New York City. It all went down during Ed Sheeran's set. Apparently, Sheeran and Alwyn are pals. According to Daily Mail, Sheeran said Alwyn was "really, really friendly; really good dude."
May 2018: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn vacation together
They were together, but not really. Swift and Alwyn posted separate snapshots, each standing by the same cactus while on vacation.
January 2019: Taylor Swift joins Joe Alwyn during award show appearances
The Favourite was an awards-season, ahem, favorite. The pair made their rounds at the Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and Oscars. In October, the actor caught up with Swift at SNL after-parties following her performance on the show.
December 20, 2019: Joe Alwyn opens up about relationship with Taylor Swift
Alwyn discussed his relationship during a sit-down with The Sunday Times, saying that 99 percent of the news about him and Swift is untrue.
"I just don't pay attention to what I don't want to pay attention to," he said. "I turn everything else down on a dial. I don't have any interest in tabloids. I know what I want to do, and that's this, and that's what I am doing."
January 31, 2020: Taylor Swift praises Joe Alwyn in Miss Americana documentary
Swift opened up about their relationship in her Netflix documentary, Miss Americana, saying that she was drawn to Alwyn's "wonderful, normal, balanced kind of life." Though he is not named, fans spot a glimpse of him in one of the scenes from backstage at her show. In November, she also revealed that Alwyn wrote two songs on her album, Folklore.
"Joe plays piano beautifully. He's always just playing and making things up and kind of creating things. Joe had written that entire piano part," she said about the song 'Exile.'
She continued, "He was singing the Bon Iver part, the 'I can see you standing honey, with his arms around your body, laughing, but the joke's not funny at all.' He was just singing it. And I was entranced and asked if we could keep writing that one."
December 11, 2020: Taylor Swift's evermore sparks marriage rumors with Joe Alwyn
Swift's album evermore was released in December 2020, sparking a flurry of rumors about their possible wedding as fans dug for more tidbits about their relationship.
For one thing, the track "Long Story Short" appears to allude to their relationship, per Elle, with Swift singing, "Now I'm all about you/I'm all about you, ah."
According to Entertainment Tonight, Swift also revealed to fans in a YouTube chat before the album's release that she worked with William Bowery (Alwyn's pen name) on three evermore songs, which were revealed to be "Champagne Problems," "Coney Island," and the title track, "Evermore."
While fans speculated, thanks to the wedding-style dress Swift wore in the music video for "Willow," that she and Alwyn secretly got married, nothing was confirmed. When Alwyn's parents were about the rumors, they told Daily Mail, "I'm sorry, I'm not going to say anything."
January 14, 2021: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn are rumored to be planning a future together
At the start of the new year, a source revealed to ET the couple were thinking about their future together.
"Taylor has gotten more and more comfortable being public with Joe and letting fans in on their romance in a way that she feels is still protecting it," the insider told the outlet. "She loves Joe so much and, of course, is not trying to hide their relationship, but she prefers to keep specific details private."
The source added, "Taylor and Joe are in it for the long haul and totally see a future with each other. They don't need outside praise or attention and are so fulfilled just being with each other and growing together as a couple."
March 14, 2021: Taylor Swift thanks Joe Alwyn in her Grammys acceptance speech
Swift thanked Alwyn during her Album of the Year Grammy acceptance speech. Later, she shared a photo of herself with her folklore team, and Alwyn liked the snap.
"Joe, who is the first person that I play every single song that I write, and I had the best time writing songs with you in quarantine," Swift said after she accepted her award.
October 2022: Taylor Swift addresses engagement rumors with Joe Alwyn
With the release of her album Midnights, Swift sings about the engagement buzz on the track "Lavender Haze."
"I'm damned if I do give a damn what people say / the 1950s s—t they want from me / I just wanna stay in that lavender haze / All they keep asking me is if I'm gonna be your bride / the only kinda girl they see is a one night or a wife."
Meanwhile, Alwyn's lips were sealed regarding whether he planned on proposing any time soon. The actor previously told WSJ Magazine in April, "I mean, the truth is, if the answer was yes, I wouldn't say, and if the answer was no, I wouldn't say."
April 2023: Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn break up
After six years together, the couple decided to call it quits.
"Joe has struggled with Taylor's level of fame and the attention from the public," a source told People. "The differences in their personalities have also become harder to ignore after years together. They've grown apart."
