She found fame with Girls Aloud and X Factor, and more recently, she debuted on the West End. Singer Cheryl Tweedy has been in the spotlight since winning ITV's Popstars in 2002.
But while her music career has been largely successful over the years, her high-profile romances and private life has been much more of a tumultuous rollercoaster.
The Geordie is celebrating her milestone 40th birthday today, as a mum-of-one to six-year-old son Bear, who she shares with former One Direction boyfriend, Liam Payne.
While Cheryl and Liam's relationship was fascinating to fans - after first meeting when he was 14 - it was her marriage with footballer Ashley Cole that most remember.
The couple enjoyed four years of marriage before their romance came crashing down in 2010, with the pop star allegedly saying: "Thank God the nightmare is over."
The pair first met in 2004 and tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Wrotham Park two years later, and Cheryl even got a tattoo on her neck to mark her commitment.
But after just two years of marriage, the relationship was rocked by Ashley's first alleged hook-up with hairdresser Aimee Walton.
They tried to put it behind them and move on, but in 2010, it was revealed that Ashley had allegedly cheated on Cheryl with four more women.
More allegations surfaced that Ashley had tried to cover up his romps, including claims by a model who said the star gave her £10,000 to keep quiet.
Cheryl finally announced her split from her love-rat husband after topless pictures of him emerged on glamour model Sonia Wild's mobile phone.
By September of that year, their quickie divorce was finalised after the former couple struck a deal over their property, money and other assets.
It was during her relationship with Ashley that Cheryl landed a spot as an X Factor judge in 2008, before resigning in 2011 after series seven.
The television personality then tried to make it in America by joining the panel of the USA X Factor, but she was axed by Simon Cowell during the auditions stage.
Cheryl fell out with the music mogul over her sensational sacking, after producers cited her strong Geordie accent and lack of charisma as the reasons they let her go.
In 2013, the singer sued production company Blue Orbit for $2.3 million (£1.4 million) for loss of earnings, and the case was settled with an undisclosed sum.
The following year, Cheryl spoke about her humiliating exit to Elle UK: "Now I can say that Simon was right to get rid of me.
"I wasn't well in the head when that was going on, so it wasn't going to work. But he wasn't right not to tell me to my face."
She later re-joined the X Factor UK panel for series eleven and twelve, and reportedly signed a £1.5 million deal to judge alongside Simon, Mel B and Louis Walsh.
In 2017, Cheryl made headlines when model Munroe Bergdorf was sacked from L'Oréal's advertising campaign over comments she made about institutionalised racism.
Munroe highlighted the fact that Cheryl was still employed by the beauty brand, despite her assault on toilet attendant Sophie Amogbokpa in 2003.
"I shouldn't be sacked for calling out racism when I was in a campaign that was meant to be championing diversity," she said.
"Especially when I was speaking about the violence of white people, but they've got Cheryl Cole on the campaign and she was actively convicted for punching a Black women in the face."
Cheryl was convicted of assaulting the 39-year-old nightclub attendant at the height of her pop fame. The court found her not guilty of racially aggravated assault.
At the time, she was ordered to pay a £3,000 fine and to do 120 hours of community service.
Responding to Munroe in 2017, Cheryl put out a statement through her rep pointing out how 'disappointed' she was to be dragged into the incident.
"More than 14 years ago Cheryl was unanimously acquitted of a charge of racially aggravated assault," said the statement. "She is disappointed to find her name involved in Munroe Bergdorf's media interview."
In September 2021, Girls Aloud singer Sarah Harding tragically passed away aged 39, after being diagnosed with terminal breast cancer.
Cheryl and her former bandmates were left 'devastated' when Sarah told them the disease was terminal. She later the Daily Mail: "Sarah was such an integral part of us all."
Last year, the close friends took part in the Race for Life in her memory. Cheryl said: "To be honest, I've never experienced or anticipated this grief."
It was announced earlier this month that Cheryl is reportedly set to address all of her toughest moments in the spotlight in an explosive tell-all interview.
The actress is said to be contemplating sharing details of heartbreak over her failed marriage to Ashley Cole and her doomed romance with Liam Payne.
"She doesn't want to hold back because she has quite a few things she thinks the world needs to hear - not to mention a fair bit of payback, too," a source told Heat magazine.
