separation

Pop star and recreational astronaut Katy Perry has found a new flame in former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in an unexpected romance that feels like a “Mad Libs” page come to life.

The “California Gurls” hitmaker and the longtime politician publicly debuted their relationship over the weekend, shutting down months of speculation. Perry, 41, and Trudeau, 53, were photographed holding hands during a date night in Paris on Saturday.

The singer, in a red body-hugging dress, and Trudeau in a black suit were seen exiting cabaret club Crazy Horse Paris, where they celebrated Perry’s birthday. Video shared by Backgrid shows Perry accepting a rose from a bystander and Trudeau placing his hand on her back as they walk to their SUV.

Perry and Trudeau first sparked relationship rumors in late July, when they were seen sharing a meal and some good conversation at an upscale restaurant in Montreal. They met up for their rendezvous, captured by TMZ, a month after Perry and “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Lord of the Rings” star Orlando Bloom ended their engagement. The former couple welcomed a daughter in 2020 and continue to co-parent.

At the time, the split with Bloom was the latest blow to Perry’s public image. Prior to their separation, the Grammy-nominated singer’s album “143” faced backlash and scathing reviews, her participation in Blue Origin‘s flashy all-female crew flight was subject to scrutiny and her Lifetimes world tour proved divisive. Trudeau seemed to be all smiles at the latter in late July.

Fans spotted the former Canadian leader, who resigned in January after nearly a decade in power, dancing and singing at Perry’s tour stop in Montreal. Earlier this month paparazzi snapped pictures of the then-rumored couple packing on the PDA on the singer’s yacht off the coast of Santa Barbara, Perry’s hometown.

Trudeau began his romance with Perry after he and ex-wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau announced their separation in 2023. The Trudeaus were married for 18 years and share three children. Though they are legally separated, their divorce is not yet final.

Neither Trudeau nor Perry has publicly addressed their relationship, save for one cheeky comment the singer made during a concert in London this month. When a fan tried shooting his shot and proposed to the singer, she responded, “You know you really should have asked me about 48 hours ago,” seemingly referring to her yacht outing with her new beau.

Perry continues the European leg of her Lifetimes tour Monday, performing at the MVM Dome in Budapest. Information about her remaining tour stops and future gigs can be found on her website.

The fans were enraged, They now saw him as akin to a martyr who might be carried out on his shield because his directors wouldn’t back his vision to bring success.

The leak was poisonous, of course, and it was meant to hurt Rodgers, which it did. He called for an investigation and for the guilty person to be removed. If there was a probe then we heard no more about it.

At that point it was plain Rodgers was losing the support of the people above him.

The regular gripes about transfers were followed by a desperate beginning to the season. A feeble exit from the Champions League, flat domestic performances, a stench of decay in the air.

Blame was shifted. When Celtic lost to Dundee a few weeks back he said: “You can’t be given the keys to a Honda Civic and drive it like a Ferrari.”

If Rodgers had said that after losing a big Champions League game then it would have been contentious enough, but after a loss to Dundee – with a tiny fraction of Celtic’s resources – it was mortifying. Later, he doubled-down on it.

The fans, increasingly growing weary of excuses, didn’t buy it, but if it was a battle between Rodgers and the Celtic board then, in their eyes, Rodgers was still an emphatic winner.

Nothing was heard from Desmond, as usual, but the story of his business life tells us he doesn’t appreciate his people going rogue. Rodgers comment by Rodgers comment, those Desmond whiskers would have to started to dance.

Monday, in the wake of a loss to Hearts that put Celtic eight points behind Derek McInnes’ team, was the endgame. Desmond opened his laptop. Sudden, unsparing and almost startling in its intensity, he unburdened himself.

Unquestionably, elements of what Rodgers did and said was self-serving. He dropped hints that some players were being signed without his full approval, something that Desmond categorically denies.

He said as recently as Sunday that he was never more determined to fix things as he was right in the here and now, but the trust had obviously gone. In both directions.

A divorce is the wisest action. This was an irretrievable breakdown. Unseemly and embarrassing.

Rodgers made good points, though, and the supporters, though turning on him slightly in the wake of recent performances, were wholly behind him in other areas.

Some will see him now as a victim, a sacrificial lamb, a man who had the bravery to speak up about the problems the club faced and who got driven out because of it. Silenced and humiliated by Desmond.

It’s an interpretation with merit, but they were two parties involved in this break-up.

Through his caustic words, Desmond has made it a vicious separation. We’ll get Rodgers’s riposte in time, but his era is over now. No coming back this time, not even a chance of a proper farewell. A sad, but inevitable conclusion.