15 December 2008
Newsdesk
Robbie Williams has reportedly been given an ultimatum by his girlfriend – it’s Take That or me.
The 34-year-old singer’s American actress girlfriend Ayda Field has told him she doesn’t want to move to the UK - where Robbie has just purchased a £7 million mansion in Wiltshire – with him.
Instead, Ayda wants to remain in Los Angeles for the sake of her career, and if Robbie wants to go back to Britain to relaunch his ailing pop career he will have to do it alone.
A source said: “It’s been a real blow for Robbie. He felt he had everything – the chance to move home, a rekindling of his relationship with Take That and all this with the love of his life by his side. Now Ayda has thrown it all into confusion.”
Ayda, 29, has reportedly told Robbie he must be willing to “commute” from England – where he is set to reunite with his former bandmates Gary Barlow, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Howard Donald – to make their relationship work.
The source added to Britain’s Daily Star newspaper: “Ayda is staying in California. She’s made that very clear, but she also wants Robbie to be there most of the time. She has told friends that he must visit often if they want to work as a couple and really she thinks he should commute from this home in Los Angeles.
“What Robbie had wanted to do, however, was to set up a real home in England. He wants to be settled, to spend time with family and old friends.
Flying back and forth was not what he had in mind.” Last week, Gary left the door open for Robbie to rejoin Take That – which he quit in 1995 – by admitting he would now be happy to welcome him back in the band.
He said: “The band has been having great fun with Robbie and we have been talking a lot. It's been really good getting to know him again. He has sorted himself out and is in a really good place at the moment.
"Robbie will not be coming on tour with us next year because he has got his own things to do. But we are not ruling out getting together with him beyond that."
