Rocker Thom leaves partner of 23 years
HE SURPRISED everyone in the music industry by maintaining one of the longest relationships in the rock ’n’ roll business, but now Radiohead’s lead singer Thom Yorke has split from Rachel Owen, his partner of 23 years, I am sorry to report.
Rachel is mother to Thom’s two children Noah, 14, and Agnes, 11, with whom she is now holidaying abroad without him.
She has been by Thom’s side since the inception of his band which has been described as ‘The Beatles of the 21st century’.
Last year, Thom was named the ‘most influential artist in music today’ by NME, an accolade which has helped him land a position as one of the wealthiest artists in music.
But now Thom faces splitting his £22million fortune with Rachel, whom he began dating when they were both at Exeter University. I understand that Rachel, a printmaker, will remain in the couple’s £3million home in Oxfordshire while Thom embarks on a long tour of his solo album Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes, which opened in Tokyo last night.
When I approached representatives for Thom on Friday, he subsequently released a statement which read: ‘Rachel and I have separated.
‘After 23 highly creative and happy years, for various reasons we have gone our separate ways. It’s perfectly amicable.’
Friends say that like his Radiohead bandmate Jonny Greenwood, who wrote music for films including There Will Be Blood, Thom is keen to have a career in composing. Last week, it was announced that he will be writing the score to Harold Pinter’s Old Times on Broadway, starring Clive Owen.
David Cameron and Nick Clegg are both fans of Radiohead, with each picking a song by the band on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs.