Celebrity couples such as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux, and Kim Kardashian and Kanye West cannot fail to make headlines.

But Dame Helen Mirren’s candid remarks about her ex Liam Neeson made us remember how quickly the showbiz world changes, and how romances and rumoured match-ups come and go.

We take a look back at some of the celebrity love interests that time forgot.

1. Dame Helen Mirren and Liam Neeson.

Helen, 70, and the Northern Irish actor, 63, met as they filmed Excalibur in 1980 and stayed together until 1984. The Queen star, who is now married to director Taylor Hackford, has since said of their relationship: “We loved each other. It was difficult to let go.”

2. Britney Spears and Colin Farrell.

The pop star and the Irish actor ignited rumours they were dating when they made a red carpet appearance together at the premiere of his film, The Recruit, in 2003. But Colin denied the two were in a relationship, insisting that he was “just a 26-year-old guy who’s single and having a good time.”

3. Tom Cruise and Cher.

Despite the 16-year age difference, the Mission: Impossible star and Cher dated in 1987, when she was at the peak of her career and he was just getting his started. But Cher wassn’t immune to Tom’s charms, describing him as “shy” and said she was “crazy about him.”

Since his romance with Cher, Tom appears to have preferred the younger woman, having married Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes, and dating Penelope Cruz.

4. Alanis Morissette and Ryan Reynolds.

Ryan Reynolds and Alanis Morissette at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards
Ryan Reynolds and Alanis Morissette at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards (Ian West/PA)

Long before his marriages to Scarlett Johansson and Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds preferred brunettes – and was engaged to the Ironic singer.

The couple, who met at Drew Barrymore’s birthday party, dated between 2002 and 2007, before they split up. Since then, Ryan has become a dad with wife Blake, while Alanis has a four-year-old daughter with rapper Mario “Souleye” Treadway.

5. Ryan Gosling and Sandra Bullock.

Ryan Gosling and Sandra Bullock at Cannes in 2002
Ryan Gosling and Sandra Bullock at Cannes in 2002 (Anthony Harvey/PA)

Ryan and Sandra started dating after they met on the set of their film Murder By Numbers.

In spite of the 16-year age gap, they dated between 2002 and 2003, before a split that is said to have left the Speed star “broken-hearted”.

6. Benicio del Toro and Scarlett Johansson. 

Scarlett Johansson and Benicio del Toro
Scarlett Johansson and Benicio del Toro (Rich Fury/AP/Anthony Devlin/PA)

Scarlett and Benicio were rumoured to have enjoyed a passionate ride in a lift in 2004.

While she denied it, Benicio fuelled the flames by telling Esquire: “Did I ever have sex in an elevator with Scarlett Johansson after an awards show? I kind of like, you know, I, well. I don’t know. Let’s leave that to somebody’s imagination. Let’s not promote it. I’m sure it has happened before. It might not be the last time either.”

7. Moby and Natalie Portman.

The unlikely couple dated in 2001, and Moby admitted he got a bit of flak over the relationship.

He explained: “As far as the very brief affair that I had with Natalie, it’s made me a target of a lot of nerd wrath. You don’t date Luke Skywalker’s mum and not have them hate your guts.”

8. Brad Pitt and Sinitta.

How did Sinitta snag Brad? The So Macho singer, who also dated Simon Cowell, dated Brad for around two years before he found Hollywood fame. She said on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! that Brad was “hot.”

She added: “He was beautiful with the most amazing body. I saw him for two years. He was fun, he was young and very sweet. It was before he made Thelma And Louise but even I saw that movie and thought, ‘Oh my God, what have I done?’”

9. Drew Barrymore and Christian Bale.

Drew Barrymore and Christian Bale
Drew Barrymore and Christian Bale (Ian West/Dominic Lipinski/PA)

Christian and Drew went on one date, 20 years ago, and the Dark Knight star admitted that sealed the fate of their short-lived romance.

He recalled: “We went to see some bloody awful horror film, and that was the end of it. She never called again.”

10. Robbie Williams and Cameron Diaz.

Robbie Williams and Cameron Diaz
Robbie Williams and Cameron Diaz (Anthony Devlin/Ian West/PA)

The Rock DJ pop star and Cameron sparked romance rumours when they were seen kissing and holding hands on a Santa Monica beach in 2003, as well as go-karting in Germany.

But their love was not to last, and Robbie has since found love with model Ayda Field while Cameron is reported to have married Good Charlotte rocker Benji Madden.

11. Madonna and Vanilla Ice.

As well as being married to Sean Penn and Guy Ritchie, Madonna’s former flings include romances with Tupac and Vanilla Ice. The pair split in 1992 after an eight-month relationship, because she included him in a sexually suggestive position in her Sex book in 1992.

“I thought she was taking pictures and running round naked because she was like that. Then when the book came out I was so embarrassed and ashamed. It was a porno,” he has said.