Lily Allen has just released her first album in seven years, West End Girl. It chronicles the end of her marriage to Stranger Things actor David Harbour, potentially revealing what really caused the pair to split in December last year, in a number of songs featuring some pretty brutal lyrics.
Lily, 40, has opened up about the "confusion, sorrow, grief [and] helplessness" she experienced during the writing of the album while speaking to British Vogue. She revealed that the topics she writes about during the album are things "that I experienced within my marriage, but that’s not to say that it’s all gospel." She added that West End Girl "is inspired by what went on in the relationship".
So what actually happened between Lily Allen and David Harbour, 50? Here's everything you need to know.
When did Lily Allen and David Harbour get married?
Lily and David met back in 2019 on celebrity dating app Raya, and then tied the knot a year later, in a 2020 ceremony in Las Vegas.
Lily, and her two daughters from her previous marriage to Sam Cooper, moved in with David in a home in New York, which was later featured on the cover of Architectural Digest.
While Lily has removed all images of David from her Instagram, a number of pictures still remain on David's. They chart moments from their marriage such as when Lily visited David on set, Lily, her children and David singing in the car together, and Polaroids the couple took together at home.
When did Lily and David split?
In December 2024 the couple split after David had allegedly cheated on Lily. Lily was spotted back on celebrity dating app Raya, with it being alleged Lily went on the app in order to find out if David had made a profile.
A source at the time told the Daily Mail, "Lily was looking for women that were on Raya and cross-referencing them with women David follows on Instagram to try to figure out who he was seeing. She was doing her Wagatha thing."
David has never directly addressed the claims, however during an interview with GQ in April earlier this year he said: "I'm protective of the people and the reality of my life. There's no use in that form of engaging [with tabloid news] because it's all based on hysterical hyperbole."
The couple have never officially confirmed if they are divorced, however during her recent interview with British Vogue, Lily referred to Harbour as her "ex-husband".
What has Lily said about relationships in her album?
West End Girl dropped earlier on 24 October and features a number of tracks many fans believe to be in reference to the breakdown of Allen's marriage to Harbour.
However, as we mentioned above, while Lily described the tracks as being "inspired by" what happened in her marriage, she says they are "not gospel".
So what does Lily say about love and relationships in each song on the album? We've decoded it all here.
The meaning of each song on West End Girl
West End Girl
During the first song on the album 'West End Girl' Lily talks about a relatively new relationship and moving to America. She then makes references to someone's demeanour changing after she booked her part in a West End show.
In the song she sadly writes: "And then my phone started ringing so I answered the call /And they were like 'Hey, you've got a lead in a play / You've gotta be back in London for rehearsals in May' / And then later that evening you said how was my day / I said 'I got some good news, I got the lead in a play' / That’s when your demeanour started to change / You said that I'd have to audition, I said 'You’re deranged'."
Lily then shares a side of a phone conversation in which she appears to sound happy at the start before slowing getting more upset.
Ruminating
The second song then goes onto include Lily's thoughts about a relationship where one party is sat up all night thinking about what their partner has done, and is potentially doing with another woman.
She sings rather pointedly: "Did you kiss her on the lips and look into her eyes? Now that it's done / Baby, won't you tell me that I'm still your number one? / ‘Cause you're my number one.”
The couple in the song then have a conversation about where there relationship is, with the partner on the phone asking if the woman really wants to know what is going on.
Sleepwalking
The third track 'Sleepwalking' she makes more references to a relationship falling apart, with the partner questioning why they're no longer intimate. She writes questioningly: "been no romance since we wed/ 'Why aren't we f***ing, baby? Yeah, that's what you said./ But you let me think it was me in my head, and nothing to do with them girls in your bed."
Lily also brings up the Madonna/Whore complex and how the partner has changed their vision of who their wife is.
Tennis
In the fourth track 'Tennis' she speaks sadly about a mysterious woman named Madeline and the impact this is having on a relationship, "I can't get my head round how you've been playing tennis / If it was just sex, I wouldn't be jealous / You won't play with me and who's Madeline?"
The song begins with with woman being excited for her partner to return home after a long time away, but that he isn't interested in her anymore. The name Madeline pops up after the singer discovers a message on her partner's phone.
The singer then writes about a woman writing an email to her partner about what she discovered, only to have it thrown back in her face.
Madeline
The mysterious Madeline makes her return during the next song which is named after her. In the song Lily talks about a couple who have opened up their marriage, but that the husband has faulted on the rules they had set up for themselves.
She writes as if despairing: "We had an arrangement / Be discrete and don't be blatant / There had to be payment / It had to be with strangers / But you're not a stranger, Madeline."
The song also features Madeline's side of the story with an American voice interjecting at various points explaining they had no idea the storyteller wasn't aware of what was going on.
Relapse
Following the upset and events of the first five songs, the next song on the album 'relapse' features Lily talking about the impact this could have on a person and their temptation to relapse into old habits in order to cope with what has happened.
“I need a drink / I need a Valium / You pushed me this far, and I just need to be numb," she sings sadly.
Pussy Palace
In one of the most brutal and heartbreaking songs on the album, 'Pussy Palace,' Lily writes about kicking a partner out of the home and later labelling them a "sex addict" after discovering letters and sex toys in their other apartment.
The song goes, full with anguish and pain: "Don't come home, I don't want you in my bed / Go to the apartment in the West Village instead," and later equally as sadly: "I found a shoebox full of handwritten letters / From brokenhearted women wishing you could have been better" and "Hundreds of Trojans, you're so f**king broken / How'd I get caught up in your double life?".
4chan Stan
Ok this is an equally heartbreaking song. During '4chan Stan' Lily talks about a woman going through her partner's bedside draw only to discover a receipt for a handbag she didn't have.
She later goes onto ask if her partner is having an affair with someone famous and if they had gone away for the weekend away together.
She writes in a tone as if to suggest she is begging her partner: "Why won't you tell me what her name is?/ This is outrageous/ What, is she famous?"
Nonmonogamummy
This is the only song on the album to feature another artist which is Specialist Moss. The song is perhaps the most fast-paced of all the album and talks about the singer reflecting on the marriage that has broken down even more.
She also talks about feeling like a failure in the marriage, adding sorrowfully and with a big dose of embarassment: "Why do I feel like such a failure?/ A life with you looked good on paper."
Just Enough
'Just Enough' carries on the anxieties and doubt that '4chan Stan' brings up. Lily writes about a woman considering a facelift to make themselves feel better.
"Look at my reflection / I feel so drawn, so old / I booked myself a facelift / Wondering how long it might hold / I gave you all my power / How I'm seen through your eyes," she writes despondently.
She also wonders if her partner has gotten someone pregnant.
She writes with an air of frustration: "Why are we here talking about vasectomies? / Did you get someone pregnant? / Someone who isn't me? / Did you take her to the clinic? / Did you hold her hand? / Is she having your baby?”
Dallas Major
Dallas Major shows a turning point in the relationship discussed in the album, with the woman joining a dating app.
"You know I used to be quite famous / That was way back in the day / Yes, I'm here for validation / And I probably should explain / How my marriage has been opened / Since my husband went astray," the lyrics go with an edge of bitterness.
Lily then sings about how ultimately the woman isn't ready to move on and "hates it" on the app.
Beg For Me
Despite the marriage being in deep trouble, Lily sings about the woman clinging onto hope and wanting her partner to fight for their marriage.
"I want your desire/ I want to be spoiled/ I want to be told I'm beautiful/ Why won't you beg-beg-beg for me?" she sings with desperation in her voice.
Let You W/In
As the album comes to a close and the singer contemplates everything that has happened in her marriage, she discusses how she is shouldering the burden of the pain of everything that has happened.
"I’m expected to be nice / Picking up the pieces / What is it you sacrifice? / I’m protecting you from your secrets," she sings, with a hint of anger.
However, the woman then claims some of her power back with Lily singing strongly: "I will not absorb your shame / It was you who put me through this."
Fruityloop
The final song on the album sees Lily reflects on the couple's relationship in a new light, with the woman analysing why the man acted the way he did, with references to the impact fame and money had on him.
"Things have gotten complicated/What with all the fame and money/ Playing with his toys/ He just wants attention," she sings fiercely.
The song ends with an iconic clapback to Lily's 2009 album It's Not Me, It's You, when she sings: "It's not me/ It's you/ And there was nothing I could do/ You're stuck inside your fruity loop."
While the album is devastating and heartbreaking, we're so glad to have Lily back in our ears.
West End Girl is out now.
