Katie v Peter. Emily Herbert
have a care in the world.’
But that wasn’t all. Katie (and, shortly afterwards, Pete) had just signed up for a new reality-TV show, a project which she felt would help her to break out from under the shadow of coupledom, to start to reestablish herself on her own.
‘Peter doesn’t know anything about Katie’s deal, which she helped engineer herself,’ said a friend. ‘She didn’t want to be associated with Peter any more and ITV were more than happy to allow her a show of her own. Bosses want to schedule the shows at the same time, which will be interesting – especially which one gets the higher ratings!’
To say that Katie would want to trounce Peter is something of an understatement and this was an attitude that would only intensify as time wore on.
It seemed that nothing either of them did could be taken lightly any more. The day after Junior’s party, Pete took the children off on holiday to Cyprus, apparently livid that the day had turned into something of a drinking session for Katie and her mates. Drink had often been another source of contention between the couple – he hated Katie going out and getting drunk, and, of course, she’d been doing that very publicly since the split. The fact that she was obviously drowning her sorrows didn’t help much, either – whatever the reason, Pete disliked her getting out of control. And so another battle in the separation commenced and another argument reared its ugly head.
However, all that was as nothing compared to what was to follow. Pete and the children were off in Cyprus, leaving Katie free to do as she wished, and, while she might have felt the huge gap created by the absence of her estranged husband and the three children in her life, she wasn’t one to mope around. It simply wasn’t her style.
So, Pete had gone to Cyprus with the children. Well, let him! Katie, meanwhile, had plans of her own: she was going to spend a week in Ibiza with friends.
Katie was ready to party. The initial shock of the break was behind her and now she needed to chill out, let her hair down and have a bit of fun. And so she set off for Ibiza, the biggest party island of them all, with a group of friends in tow. ‘Yee haa, I’m going to have some fun at last,’ she declared. ‘It’s been a fucking nightmare, but I’m going to have a wicked time. I haven’t had a full week’s holiday for ten years. I am up for it!’ She was to prove as good as her word.
In typical Katie fashion, this was not just a holiday: she was combining the trip with a photo shoot for a new calendar. But she was intending to party, and party she did: very conspicuously, very overtly and, at times, in a manner so attention-seeking that she could hardly move for the surrounding press. The message was clear: Katie was back on the singles scene, totally over her husband and the world could make what they liked of her behaviour. And it did.
The party set off in mid-June on a 6.10am, easyJet flight from Gatwick, during which Katie had to endure the indignity of being frisked because her TV earpiece – the reality crew were following her every move – set off the detector alarm. Nor was she allowed to board the plane carrying a 150ml can of hairspray because it was over the 100ml limit. However, once on board, despite the early hour, everyone was clearly determined to enjoy themselves: the group swiftly got through four bottles of champagne, before Katie treated them to pictures of a naked man on her mobile.
‘I hope I don’t get into too much trouble,’ she said gleefully. ‘I’m determined to have fun. I’ve packed my slippers in case I have a quiet night in, but I doubt it.’
However, she managed to provoke yet more attention while studying an in-flight questionnaire, in particular, the question ‘Are you pregnant?’ ‘Whoops, yes, I’m pregnant!’ she said, before a spokesperson hastily reassured everyone that she was joking. And so they were off.
Not everyone was charmed, however. The cabin crew asked her if she’d pose for pictures with fans on board, but she declined. Nor was she in the mood to sign autographs. The airline staff became pretty fed up about it all. ‘We can confirm Katie did fly with us to Ibiza – and also that unfortunately she was one of the grumpiest celebrities we’ve ever dealt with,’ said an easyJet spokesperson. Katie herself let it rest.
As the repercussions of the break-up continued to spread, another element that would occur repeatedly throughout the months ahead was the steady stream of revelations about the couple, especially Katie’s private life. Now was to be just such a case: it turned out that Katie had been on medication for much of her married life, but was now coming off it.
‘I’m doing really well, focusing on the kids, my work, keeping fit and moving forward,’ she commented. ‘And, after four years, I’m no longer taking my anti-depressants. It has taken me four years to get to the healthy place I am now. I’m in a really good place.’ Previously, her depression had not been widely known about, but one thing was clear: Katie wanted the rest of the world to know that it had been a problem throughout her relationship with Pete.
Once in situ, she headed for the Es Vive hotel where she was staying, one of the island’s premier spots for partying (with a no-children policy), and donned a black bikini to relax by the pool. She and the rest of her gang ordered jugs of sangria. ‘Katie feels absolutely drained,’ said a friend. ‘She’s had an emotionally knackering five weeks and wants to let her hair down. Kate believes she works bloody hard for her money and deserves this trip. She’s not got the kids with her, so she’s not tied down. If she wants to go out every night and get hammered, then why shouldn’t she? After all, she’s a single lady now. Kate wants to treat all her mates and paint the town pink.’
However, it didn’t all go according to plan. Katie clearly wanted to show her wild side again, but this didn’t go down well with everyone: during the day she posed for pictures on Bora Bora beach, but one question was repeatedly heard from onlookers: ‘Where’s Pete?’
That evening, the party went to the Ibiza Rocks hotel to watch the Ting Tings. They then moved on to the Eden nightclub in San Antonio, where they added vodka, Jack Daniel’s and more champagne, this time Veuve Clicquot, to the mix, having been given £300 ‘buckets’ by the club. By this time, a clearly tired and emotional Katie started to gyrate up against a pole, before hooking up with male model Anthony Lowther, 28, who had arrived at the establishment dressed in tartan leggings, an outfit almost as eye-catching as the one Katie was wearing. The two were seen kissing – although Katie was also spotted kissing another man – and it was clear that they were getting on.
‘There was chemistry between them,’ said an onlooker. ‘He was pouring booze into her mouth from the bottle, while she laughed and shrieked around. When she jumped on to the podium next to the DJ booth, she moved her body up and down seductively against his. Katie was acting as if her behaviour was totally normal; it was like she was putting on a show for everyone there. She was saying, “I can do this now, I’ll be divorced in five and a half weeks!”’
Anthony picked Katie up and deposited her on a sofa at the back of the club, at which point her blue dress rose up over her head, exposing her G-string. Undeterred, she then started flashing her breasts. Finally, as the clock was heading for 5am, the two of them went back to the Es Vive hotel, while the others partied on.
Naturally, onlookers were deeply shocked. ‘Katie could barely stand and kept putting her sailor’s cap on people’s heads in the queue,’ said one. ‘But when this pretty brunette went up to say hello, she just lost the plot.’
Katie had certainly got the eyes of the world upon her – although not, holidaying as he was in Cyprus with the children (and without the daily papers), Pete’s.
The next day, there was more relaxing by the pool and more for the photo shoot, partly on the beach and partly back at the hotel, where other guests were irritated that they were banned from using the cameras on their phones. A speedboat ride followed, also for the calendar