Name Cheryl Cole was born Cheryl Tweedy June 30, 1983 and raised in the northern England city of Newcastle upon Tyne. She was interested in dancing as a young child and also explored modelling. She won a number of competitions and also appeared in two British Gas advertisements.
Popstars: The Rivals and Girls Aloud:
Cheryl Tweedy was working as a waitress when she auditioned for the talent competition show Popstars: The Rivals at age 19. The show ended with a public vote in November 2002 and five of the girls in the competition formed the group Girls Aloud. Cheryl Tweedy received the most votes of any of the girls and thus was the first announced to be part of the new group. Girls Aloud is the most successful of artists to come out of a Britsh TV talent competition. They have reached the UK pop top 10 with 20 different singles.
Personal Life and the Tabloids:
In January 2003 Cheryl Tweedy caused a tabloid sensation when she was involved in an altercation with nightclub attendant Sophie Amogbokpa. The incident went to trial and she was convicted of assault occasioning bodily harm. Cheryl Tweedy was sentenced to 120 hours community service plus a compensation to her victim and court fees.
In 2004 Cheryl Tweedy began dating English football star Ashley Cole. They were engaged in June 2005 in Dubai and married in July 2006. Later tabloid stories indicated infidelity issues in the relationship, but they have reportedly since reconciled.
Cheryl Cole as 'X Factor' Judge and Mentor:
June 10, 2008 Cheryl Cole was announced as the replacement judge on the phenomenally successful British TV talent show X Factor. She replaced Sharon Osbourne. As mentor on the show, Cheryl Cole was given the girls group to guide and ultimately one of her competitors, Alexandra Burke, won the competition. She returned in 2009 and is the mentor for the boys. Joe McElderry, one of the boys, has been cited as a favorite to win.
Solo Pop Star:
Cheryl Cole contributed vocals and danced in the video for will.i.am's top 5 UK pop hit "Heartbreaker" in 2008. The following year she began working on solo material. The first single "Fight for This Love" was released in October 2009 and became the fastest selling single of the year to that point going straight to #1 on the UK pop singles chart. The album 3 Words followed the single on to the charts and instantly topped the album chart selling over 125,000 copies in its first week.
