Cheryl Fernandez-Versini – born Cheryl Tweedy in Newcastle in 1983 – first rose to fame in 2002 by taking part in reality TV programme Popstars: The Rivals.

She, along with Nicola Roberts, Sarah Harding, Kimberley Walsh and Nadine Coyle, won a place in girl group Girls Aloud and went on to score the Christmas number one of that year with their debut single Sound Of The Underground.

Cheryl Fernandez-Versini
Cheryl Fernandez-Versini in 2015 (Thibault Camus/AP/PA Images)

According to the Official Charts Company, the group had a total of four UK number one singles and 21 UK top 10s.

In 2009 Girls Aloud announced they were taking a short break but reunited in 2012 for their 10th anniversary.

In March 2013, after their final concert in Liverpool, they announced on Twitter that they were splitting up indefinitely.

Girls Aloud
Popstars: The Rivals winners Girls Aloud, from left: Nicola Roberts, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Cheryl Tweedy and Kimberley Walsh (Ian West/PA Archive/PA Images)

Cheryl launched a successful solo career and has released four albums: 3 Words, Messy Little Raindrops, A Million Lights and Only Human, her latest effort which came out in 2014.

According to her Official Charts Company page, she remains the first female British solo artist to have had five number one singles.

The 33-year-old joined The X Factor as a judge in 2008 and during that time she mentored two winners – Alexandra Burke and Joe McElderry.

Cheryl
Cheryl in 2010 performing as a solo artist (Yui Mok/PA Archive/PA Images)

She left the show in 2010 before rejoining in 2014, following a short stint as a judge on the US version of The X Factor in 2011.

She was sensationally fired by Simon Cowell before the show even aired.

She later said in an interview with the Evening Standard magazine that Simon had done the “right thing to remove her”.

X Factor 2014
Cheryl on The X Factor in 2014 alongside Simon Cowell, Mel B and Louis Walsh (Tom Dymond/Thames/PA Images)

“I was suffering from a lot of things – heartache, confusion – I was in a dark place,” she said.

Following her X Factor return in 2014, she went on to mentor that year’s runner-ups, Reggie N Bollie.

Cheryl is very involved in charitable work and has set up her own organisation alongside The Prince’s Trust entitled Cheryl’s Trust.

Cheryl and the Prince of Wales
Cheryl with the Prince of Wales in 2012 (Sean Dempsey/PA Archive/PA Images)

The aim of the charity is to raise £2 million to build a centre to support young people in her hometown of Newcastle.

In 2003, Cheryl was charged with assault after becoming involved in an incident with toilet attendant Sophie Amogbokpa at a club in Guildford, Surrey.

She was later cleared of the racially aggravated assault charge against her but was found guilty of assault and was ordered to pay a £3,000 fine and complete 120 hours of community service.