by Louise Ford
In January 2005, ever understanding of Keira’s career, the handsome model was snapped by her side at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah to watch a screening of her film, The Jacket. A month later they were reunited in London, this time huddled in each other’s arms while walking around the antique stores of Notting Hill in the rain. ‘Keira had a spring in her step, she was walking hand in hand with Jamie and you can tell they are totally loved up,’ an onlooker noted to a magazine at the time.
The pair had returned to the capital for Keira’s twentieth birthday, which was to be a modest affair with just close friends and family. ‘I like to go to normal places – just basic bistros and cafes,’ she admitted. ‘I’ve never been the kind of person to go out to places like The Ivy and pose, it’s just not me.’
The truth was, of course, that it was becoming impossible for Jamie and Keira to meet in public places, even if they wanted to. Keira had worked on three film sets in 2004 and the media interest was overwhelming; when she wasn’t being hounded for a press or TV interview, there was another premiere to go to, a charity event to attend or auditions and rehearsals for the next role.
It wasn’t like Jamie was waiting in the wings either; his modelling career was seriously taking flight and endless bookings were now taking him across the globe. Ever since the Asprey photo shoot with Keira, Select had been inundated with requests for fresh-faced Jamie to grace their campaigns. The buzz surrounding his relationship had undeniably helped and, after escorting his famous girlfriend down the red carpet at the New York premiere of King Arthur in June 2004, his international profile had soared.
It wasn’t long before he was fronting an advertising campaign for Calvin Klein. It was the major modelling breakthrough he’d been waiting for. In a series of controversial, erotic shots for the designer’s autumn 2004 range, Jamie appeared writhing on a beach with Russian supermodel Natalia Vodianova in skintight black jeans and with a rippling, bare torso.
So successful was the campaign that he became a firm favourite with the fashion house overnight, and future jobs were sent his way when the CK group booked him two seasons later – this time opposite the formidable supermodel Kate Moss. The snaps also proved to make him something of an ambassador of the Calvin Klein lifestyle, a brand which was described in the press as ‘hot, sexually provocative and steamy’ and deemed so ‘pornographic’ in some quarters that they provoked demonstrations beneath billboards.
Behind closed doors, though, Jamie appeared nonplussed with the fuss that the sexy adverts fuelled. ‘Calvin Klein wants to be controversial, so if people are demonstrating under a billboard of me getting my arse bitten by Natalia Vodianova, then that’s a win for them, because it creates attention,’ he told The Times newspaper. ‘I hope that’s the closest I’ll ever come to porn.’
Throughout the summer more signings came, with Jamie fronting collections for Tommy Hilfiger and British designer John Richmond. ‘Jamie Dornan is one of the most exciting new faces to hit the international model scene this year,’ Showcase magazine wrote in June 2005, alongside a photo of Jamie with a shaved head and modelling a John Richmond T-shirt.
Now living in New York, the offers were coming in thick and fast, and the year heralded a Caribbean-inspired print campaign for Armani Exchange and a photo editorial in GQ magazine, in which Jamie was heralded as ‘the male Kate Moss’. ‘In the span of twenty years, I’ve seen maybe four models who have what Jamie Dornan has,’ said Jim Moore, the long-time creative director at GQ, who put much of his success down to having a face the camera loved. ‘There is something else though. He’s like the male Kate Moss. His proportions are a little off. He has a slight build. He’s on the small side for male models. But his torso is long, and so he looks taller, and he brings a relaxed quality to modelling. He knows what he’s there for, but unlike a lot of people he’s not trying to be a male model. He is not modelling.’
Astonishingly, and in typical Jamie fashion, he didn’t believe the hype. Instead, he was attributing his newfound success to American bookers being fooled by his Irish charm. ‘I think the only reason I’ve done well to date is that I don’t take it very seriously,’ he told a local radio station in Northern Ireland. ‘I feel completely blessed to be able to do it, and it’s a great way to make money, travel around and have a laugh.
‘[…] You go over to America, talk to some people in an Irish accent, and they love it. They think you’re all very nice, and they book you.’
The shoot for men’s magazine GQ in January 2005 was a roaring success, with their website inundated with comments from adoring fans – both male and female. Ironically, the shot – which saw the Irish star posing in a charcoal grey suit with his hair slicked back – was pulled out of the archives in 2013 by E! Online and posted on its website in the wake of Jamie’s casting in Fifty Shades of Grey. ‘Even though Jamie is fully clothed in GQ’s January 2005 issue, he still embodies all the sexiness that is Christian Grey even back then,’ a journalist on the entertainment website swooned.
It was true to say that ‘even back then’ – in his twenties – it was abundantly obvious that this young model had something out of the ordinary. Indeed, it was no surprise then that news of his ability to act so effortlessly for the camera had started to spread throughout the industry and the first mutterings of Jamie being touted as an actor started to emerge. A friend admitted a few weeks after the GQ editorial that Jamie was being put forward for screen parts. ‘Jamie is modelling with Select but he’s been approached by a number of leading acting agencies. He’s Irish, dark-haired and can grow great facial hair so he’s being touted as the next Colin Farrell,’ the source told Britain’s Mail on Sunday newspaper.
Until that moment, Jamie’s life had been focused on two things: modelling and Keira. As his career was about to crank up a gear and perhaps follow a new path into acting, the love-struck pair decided to seize on a quiet break in their schedules in April to take their first holiday together. Packing their bags, they jetted to a luxury resort in the Caribbean, where they hoped to enjoy the golden sands and crystal clear pools far away from the Hollywood limelight. Eager to keep his girlfriend happy, Jamie also went to amazing lengths to ensure that Keira had a romantic break to remember at their sumptuous hotel in St Vincent. ‘Jamie ordered hotel staff to cover their bedroom in rose petals and light fifty candles. He wanted to give her a really romantic night – and it’s fair to say she was impressed,’ a source told The Mirror newspaper.
But this such precious ‘alone time’ the pair so desperately desired was short-lived and within hours of touching down in the tropical paradise, the paparazzi were hot on their heels. A day later the first ever photos of Keira in her bikini were splashed across newspapers back at home in the UK.
The chaos didn’t stop when they returned to work, and it was becoming increasingly clear to Jamie’s friends and family that as well as the endless press intrusion, his busy schedule was also starting to suffocate their relationship. Keira was quite clearly in love with Jamie but her greatest passion remained her career. She was now working flat out; with the role of Elizabeth in Jane Austin’s classic Pride and Prejudice under her belt, she had signed up for not one but two sequels to Pirates of the Caribbean, playing opposite Hollywood legend Johnny Depp. It was revealed that she had been paid a staggering US$12.6 million to reprise her role of Elizabeth Swann and, along with the rest of the crew, she was now deeply embedded on set for the best part of the next year. Keira’s professional life had been moving incredibly fast, placing enormous strain on their long-distance relationship but it wasn’t her career that was going to push them further apart – it was his.
Thanks to the agents Keira had signed him up with, the rumours were indeed true: Jamie was finally about to realise his childhood dream of being an actor. He had landed his first film role in Sofia Coppola’s film Marie Antoinette. The call had seemingly come out of the blue – one minute Jamie was rehearsing with his band, Sons of Jim, at his London flat and the next his agent w
as telling him that film director Sofia had been on the phone asking if he was free to star in her latest movie.
She had apparently heard about Jamie from a photographer friend in New York, who was convinced that he had all the credentials to become a film star. Astonished by the remarkable offer, Jamie flew to Paris immediately for an afternoon audition and the following day was told he had got the part. The square-jawed model was to play opposite Spiderman beauty Kirsten Dunst, as the queen’s lover, Axel von Fersen. It wasn’t a massive role by any means but Jamie was over the moon that his talent had finally been noticed.
Despite being deeply grateful for the chance to prove himself on screen, he was clearly suspicious of the quick casting and was convinced that he had only landed the part because they couldn’t find anyone better. ‘It was the last role cast. I guess there had been pressure to have a certain ilk of actor, some big name from the up-and-coming list, but they hadn’t been able to find someone.’
Although Jamie was dogged with self-doubt, Coppola and the movie’s production team immediately saw he was more than just a pretty face and believed they had found a talented actor in the making. ‘We were very impressed by Jamie’s audition, he definitely has an untapped talent there,’ a production source told the Daily Mirror newspaper. ‘Without giving the movie away to those who don’t know the story, Jamie’s character Hans is an admirer of Marie Antoinette and spends much of the film having his love unrequited.’
Down to earth and self-deprecating, Jamie had his own take on the role of Antoinette’s occasional boy-bangle. ‘I pretty much ride in on a horse, shag her, go to a couple of parties, have some breakfast, and ride out,’ he told a magazine.
There was no doubt that Jamie’s sculpted abs had most likely won him the part but quite sensibly he wasn’t going to complain, as the role would mean getting on the first rung of the acting ladder.
His girlfriend Keira, meanwhile, shared little of his relaxed attitude to the job and, experiencing something of a role reversal, she was reportedly slightly concerned at Jamie’s lengthy and intimate rehearsal time with stunning Kirsten. ‘His character Hans is a courtier and admirer of Marie Antoinette and his love goes unrequited. Keira has made it pretty clear to Jamie that once the cameras stop, he’s all hers! They do have to get pretty up close and personal to be fair,’ a film source revealed.
Meanwhile, getting up close and personal with his real-life lover was proving to be difficult and cracks in his relationship with Keira were starting to appear. They undoubtedly loved each other but there was a hefty list of factors working against them. A trip to Glastonbury Festival was a case in point. Keira had splashed out £3,000 on a Winnebago (type of large luxury camper van) at the Somerset site for what was supposed to be a cosy love-in, with the occasional band thrown in for good measure. The couple had hoped for a romantic weekend with friends at the legendary music event, which boasted a secluded VIP area to hide in if Keira’s presence in the muddy compound proved too much. The two-day saga seemed to start off well … Keira was caught snogging Jamie in the hospitality area by journalists but seemed remarkably carefree about her exploits, telling a newspaper, ‘I’m loving every minute of the festival. The rain and clouds appear to be following me – we had massive thunderstorms while filming Pirates Of The Caribbean. Jamie and I are staying in a Winnebago – you wouldn’t catch me in a tent!’
However, as the press caught wind of the fact Keira and Jamie were mingling with the public in a rare display of openness, the fun, festival atmosphere started to lose its charm for the couple. Photographers were hounding them and snaps began to emerge of the pair walking hand in hand, their heads bowed and faces contorted with stress as they tried to make it across the muddy festival arena without getting in harm’s way. The media interest had become so intrusive that Jamie no longer wanted to leave their camper van. It was depressingly clear that leading a normal life with Keira as his girlfriend was now out of the question.
Remembering that period of time, Keira told Vogue magazine in 2012, ‘I literally had no life outside of acting, and I just wanted to go off and not be “on” all the time, not be photographed. I once went to the Glastonbury Music Festival and was completely surrounded by packs of paparazzi the entire time, so I ended up sitting in a trailer, unable to go out.’
When they eventually ventured out to a VIP bash for a friend’s birthday away from the prying eyes of the press, two drunken partygoers launched themselves onto the pair, determined to make their lives miserable by shining torches in their eyes and mocking Keira’s accent. ‘It was an invitation-only event but somehow these two drunk Danish guys managed to get in. Everyone had been having a great night until they arrived and Keira and Jamie were acting more lovey-dovey than ever,’ a partygoer remembered. ‘For some reason they picked on Keira and seemed hell-bent on getting a reaction. They were taking the p*** out of her voice and being extremely loud and annoying.
‘Keira smiled and tolerated them at first, but when they talked so loudly over her conversation, she started looking daggers at them. After the torch shining incident and the rude way they were teasing her about her posh voice it all got too much.’
Keira and Jamie left the party to go to a nearby bar but the two men followed and, in a menacing move, sat at a table opposite them. ‘She could probably sense a confrontation brewing so she grabbed Jamie and left,’ a friend recalled. ‘She made the best of the rest of the weekend – but this definitely put a dampener on things.’
As soon as they returned to London, Jamie and Keira were seen recovering at London’s swanky eatery Nobu, where they indulged in comfort food and some much-needed romantic time out. ‘They were holding hands over the table in a discreet section. But there was no mistaking the look of love. They were laughing so much it was heart-warming,’ an onlooker told a newspaper.
However, behind the scenes, all was not well. Jamie was shaken by the experience and his hatred of the press had already taken root. Keira also openly admitted that she wasn’t the easiest person to live with, as she worried incessantly about the cinema releases of her two latest films, Domino and Pride and Prejudice. ‘I’m naturally pessimistic. I don’t get carried away with things. I can be a moody cow,’ she revealed.
Acting had at that point devoured her life and several years later she admitted that the time when she was dating Jamie was incredibly stressful. ‘I wish I hadn’t been [such a hard worker]. Life would have been so much easier,’ Keira told Harper’s Magazine. ‘I was spending so much time being neurotic and beating myself up that I thought actually, if I didn’t, I might get further by just going, “Oh, f**k it”.’
Instead, it was her relationship that took the hit.
Jamie and Keira finally split in August 2005. Traditionalist Jamie could no longer cope with her fame and they had started to argue about the fact that he was struggling to accept Keira being the breadwinner. ‘There is a big pressure when you go out with someone like Keira. You can feel a bit second-rate and that’s what started to happen. It’s not like I was bringing the bread to the table – and that can start to affect everything,’ he said. ‘The man is meant to be the Alpha in the relationship on the money and power front and clearly I was not. You feel you have to be dominant in other areas and that leads to problems. If the person with you in a relationship has more power in terms of occupation, they don’t want to think, “Oh, he must find it really awkward because I make loads of money”.’
Jamie and Keira were having crisis talks on an almost daily basis and they finally decided to part ways. Friends were adamant that his career in acting also played a role in their split. ‘When Jamie announced he wanted to broaden his repertoire and try acting as well as modelling Keira was really supportive. While the idea of them both sharing the same profession was romantic, the reality is they were starting to see less and less of each other,’ a friend explained. ‘When she comes back from a shoot she shuns showbiz parties and enjoys a quiet life with people she loves around her. But with Jami
e trying to crack the big time he’s not often around. That’s very hard for a young couple to withstand.’
As newspapers scrambled for stories, Jamie’s agent also released a statement confirming the break-up. ‘Keira and Jamie had decided to call a halt to their relationship in its current phase but they remain completely committed to each other as friends and will continue to see each other in this capacity,’ it read.
It was true to say that both Jamie and Keira were still young and, with the next natural stage for them being marriage or children, it was also a case of wrong place, wrong time. ‘We all need romance in our lives but marriage and living happily ever after is not something I think about at the moment and certainly won’t for a while,’ she told a newspaper a week after their split.
Clearly heartbroken, she also went on to describe handsome Jamie as her ideal man: ‘I’d go for someone who is a little bit brooding and somebody you can have a good conversation with, a good fight with, who will always keep you guessing and make you laugh. And he has to have good shoes.’ But Jamie was gone. She had asked him to move out of her Maida Vale flat and, having handed back the keys, he was now living in a nearby apartment close to Notting Hill with his sister Jessica.
While he was enjoying spending some time out of the spotlight, with evenings in and home-cooked meals, Keira was drowning her sorrows with friends. After she was spotted looking the worse for wear on a night out in London, a friend said, ‘She’s been on the town with the girls for a couple of boozy nights out. And although she’s still distraught, it’s done her the world of good.’
‘I’m lucky in that I have a great group of mates and I can do my talking to them,’ she told Now magazine at the time. However, hot on the heels of the story of her split with Jamie came the ‘news’ that Keira had fallen in love with a new man: Kaz James, the frontman of band Bodyrockers.