Getty Mel C attends Royal Albert Hall 150, celebrating 150 years of Royal Albert Hall, on July 19, 2021 in London, England.
Melanie C, also known as Mel C and Sporty Spice, is in a long-term relationship with her manager, Joe Marshall, following her split from ex-boyfriend Thomas Starr. Starr is the father of her child. She has had two serious relationships since the Spice Girls but has never been married. Mel C has a 12-year-old daughter, Scarlett.
Mel C will be one of the contestants on Dancing With the Stars in 2021. Mel C wrote on Instagram that she was “so excited” to participate. She told ET that even though she danced as a pop star, the routines are much different.
“I feel very unprepared, in fact, it’s crazy,” Melanie C told ET. “I had my first rehearsal yesterday and it was wild, because I have danced, you know, with the Spice Girls — we do our little dance routines. I danced as a kid. I did ballet, and it’s like, can you just forget everything you’ve ever learned? It’s so, so different. And all the styles have such different techniques, so I like a challenge.”
The season premiere of Dancing With the Stars is finally here! DWTS Season 30 kicks off Monday, September 20, 2021, at 8 p.m. Eastern time on ABC.
Here’s what you need to know:
Mel C Says Boyfriend Joe Marshall ‘Challenges & Respects’ Her
Mel C makes a rare appearance with boyfriend Joe Marshall: The Spice Girl, 46, appeared in good spirits as she flashed a smile while using her one hour of exercise a day. t.co/yJ2ldCwbe3
Melanie C began dating Marshall, who is now her manager, back in 2015, and they have remained close since then, according to the Daily Mail. She keeps her relationship private, but spoke about the strength of their relationship in a 2016 interview with Closer.
“He challenges me but respects and loves me. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a relationship where someone has got my back,” she told Closer.
Marshall was Mel C’s boyfriend before he became her manager, according to The Sun. She hired Marshall as her manager in 2017 after splitting with longtime manager Nancy Phillips, The Sun reported.
A source told The Sun that hiring Marshall was a huge display of trust.
“It’s not a long-term plan but if things work out well, who knows what could happen?” the source told The Sun. “It is a huge display of trust from Mel as her singing career is incredibly important to her.”
Mel C Credits Her Daughter, Scarlett, for Giving Her the Strength to Split From Longterm Boyfriend Thomas Starr
Mel C told BBC Radio 4 – Desert Island Discs that it was her daughter, Scarlett, who gave her the strength to leave her long-term relationship with property developer Thomas Starr. The two dated for 10 years after meeting in Barbados, had a daughter together and lived together in north London, the Daily Mail reported.
“Scarlett has made me braver. She has made me stand up for myself more. I couldn’t have done that without the strength that I got from her,” she told BBC Radio 4.
She said that she knew she needed to stand up for herself more, and realized that she did not want her daughter growing up in an environment where both she and Scarlett were unhappy.
“I make big decisions,” she said on the show. “Leaving her dad was hard but I wasn’t happy and she wasn’t happy, and it wasn’t the environment I wanted my child to grow up in.”
Mel C attempts to keep her daughter’s life private, too. She once posted a picture of 12-year-old Scarlett on Instagram, but blurs her face. She shared a photo of herself and Scarlett with her dad on Father’s Day.
“From Spanish football tours in the 70’s to Vegas oxygen bars in the 00’s and everything in between. We’ve always loved our travelling and I hope we can get back to it soon! Happy Father’s Day Dad. Love you xxxxx,” she wrote.
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