Brad & Jen - A Brief History

Brad & Jen in happier timesAlthough there will be plenty of people around the world feeling good about the prospect of an available Brad Pitt or Jennifer Aniston, their split is a tragic tale.   

They were undoubtedly the golden couple of the golden town, with similarly coloured careers and personas - so what went wrong?

We take a quick look back at their relationship and the rumours and chat that have followed Mr and Mrs Pitt...      

The Quotes        

After two years of marriage Jen said: "Everybody always asks if we're happy. Give me a break. We've been married two years. In Hollywood years, that's forever."       

Brad & Jen just before the splitIn May 2004 Brad revealed a more cryptic insight into his relationship with Jennifer when he said: "There is so much pressure from day one to be with someone forever - and I'm not sure that it really is in our nature to be with something for the rest of our lives."   

A week later he came out to squash the ensuing chat that he and Jennifer were heading for a split, saying: "Jen and I are strong, no, I'm not in the doghouse. Everything is on the table and we discuss everything."      

The Rumours       

The first serious inklings that the Brad and Jen machine had problems was from banter during the spring of 2004 that Brad was getting a little too friendly with Angelina Jolie.   

Staff at Los Angeles' Standard Hotel claim to have seen the pair kissing at the beginning of April, whilst the two were filming Mr And Mrs Smith. The rumours of an affair were so persistent that Brad issued a statement denying any involvement with Angelina.   

But the most recent mutterings about the reason behind the break-up of the Pitts' marriage still involve Angelina.   

The News Of The World claims they were told by a source that the marriage was over after Jen picked up a phone in her house and heard her husband carrying on an "intimate love chat" with Ms Jolie. "Jennifer went ballistic. Brad realised it was over," the paper reported.    

The Children Thing       

Jen's been known to boast about how good Brad was in bed and what a fabulous dad he'd be. In January 2004, she revealed that they were so desperate to have children they'd already built a huge nursery at their multi-million dollar mansion in Beverly Hills, adding: "We call it The Room. Brad's waited a long time for kids."       

And in May that same year, Brad himself revealed their future plans: "A family? No question. We're heading that way. It's a natural progression for us, and it's time."       

But this all came after earlier reports in 2002 in the Sun that the couple were going through a tricky patch because Jennifer was desperate to have kids and move away from Hollywood once Friends ended - but Brad wasn't so keen.       

"Not only does Brad not want to move, he's not sure he wants to have kids," the paper reported a source as saying.       

But that same year, Jennifer told the Daily Mirror about the couple's kid count: "I always thought two (children), but Brad wants seven," she said.       

The Future       

Of course if Brad suddenly hooks up with Angelina or Jennifer suddenly gets in the family way, then we might be able to hazard some more guesses into why they fell out of love...