Has Taylor Swift Finally Found The One? Who Is British Boyfriend Joe Alwyn?

May 2024 · 5 minute read

There isn’t a single die-hard Taylor Swift fan who wouldn’t celebrate the star’s birthday every December 13th. 

The singer-songwriter took to Twitter to express her thanks and love from her fans, saying: 

“*don’t say it, don’t say it OKAY I’m saying it:* I’M FEELIN 32. And Alana [Haim] is feeling 30. Don’t worry we tested everyone! Thank you so much for the birthday wishes, I love you all so much.“

Posting some candid shots from her birthday party last night (don’t worry, the party was covid-free!), Swift promised fans that there is so much more for them to hear.

With the recent re-release of her hit record Red (Taylor’s Version) and the subsequent short film she wrote and directed, All Too Well, fans were reminded of a certain someone who inspired the album.

It is no secret the country-star-turned-pop-idol bases most of her music on her romantic life. Since she came on the scene at the age of 15, her personal life has been analyzed throughout her career. 

With each album comes an onslaught of criticism directed towards the heartbreaker in question. 

Red and its re-release have resulted in actor Jake Gyllenhaal’s name making the rounds on social media over the past couple of months, particularly after the inclusion of the 10-minute version of the song “All Too Well.”

Swift, who has had a steady rotation of boyfriends over her career, may have finally found the one.

In 2017 it was rumored that she had been dating British actor Joe Alwyn for a year, and the couple has kept their relationship quiet since then.

Alwyn has collaborated with Swift on her albums folklore and evermore, credited as a co-writer under the pseudonym William Bowery. 

Who is Joe Alwyn?

Alwyn was born in Kent, England, and raised in Tufnell Park and Crouch End in North London.

His father is a documentary filmmaker, and his mother is a psychotherapist. He is the great-grandson of English composer William Alwyn.

Alwyn had always dreamed of being an actor despite being introverted as a child. 

He joined the National Youth Theatre as a teenager. While he was pursuing a degree in English Literature and Drama from the University of Bristol, he took part in two student productions. These were performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. 

Upon his graduation in 2012, he went on to complete a BA in acting from the Royal Central School of Speech & Drama.

His first acting role came in 2015 when three-time Oscar-winning director Ang Lee cast him as the lead role in his 2016 war drama, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, based on Ben Fountain’s bestselling novel. 

Lee sang Alwyn’s praises at a private screening of the film, as reported by the London Evening Standard: “One minute into the first audition for me it was a done deal,” Lee claims. “He was an absolutely top-notch talent. I could smell it from two miles away.”

Of his casting in the film, Alwyn recalled that “the whole thing happened in 10, maybe 12 days…suddenly I went from being a student to standing in front of these huge camera on a set.” 

Much like the character, Alwyn was thrust into an unknown environment, and his introverted nature led him to shy away from the limelight as much as he could. 

After the release of Billy Lynn, Alwyn very quickly found himself in front of the camera once again, in a supporting role in 2017’s The Sense of An Ending.

The actor has taken roles he knows work with his skills, leading him to have been cast in multiple Academy-Award-winning projects since 2018.

Not much is known about his personal life. His relationship with Swift, albeit out of the spotlight, has been the subject of media attention for the past four years. 

His Relationship With Taylor Swift

 Once news of their relationship made headlines, it seemed as though the world would know every detail about the couple.

Based on Swift’s romantic history, it was not surprising that she was seen with someone from the entertainment industry. 

What shocked tabloids were the fact that she opted to keep it on the sidelines rather than wanting to be seen with him in public.

From the tidbits the singer provided on social media, fans noticed the couple often spends most of their time at home, working on music or studying a new script.

Swift has been seen visiting Alwyn on various sets and was recently photographed on the set of the film adaptation of Denis Johnson’s The Stars at Noon in South America.

In her Grammy’s acceptance speech for folklore, Swift thanked her beau, saying, “Joe, who is the first person that I play every single song that I write and I had the best time writing songs with you in quarantine,”

Alwyn made a brief appearance in Swift’s Miss America Netflix documentary, where the two hugged on-screen.

In a conversation with Paul McCartney as part of Rolling Stone’s ‘musicians on musicians’ series, Swift points out that her relationship with Alwyn has given her the space to grow as a person and that he has had a hand in her self-improvement.

“I think that in knowing him and being in the relationship I am in now, I have definitely made decisions that have made my life feel more like a real life and less like just a storyline to be commented on in tabloids.”

She has mentioned her relationship with Alwyn in the songs “Lover” and “Cardigan,” incorporating it in the lyrics as a testament to all he has done for her.

Do They Have Any Plans For The Future?

As with nearly everything about their relationship, the couple hasn’t openly discussed potentially getting married shortly.

Sources close to the singer say that she hopes it is in the cards for her but does not expect anything at the moment.

With them both having busy schedules, she hopes to spend as much time with him as possible before they embark on different projects. 

The song “Peace” caught the attention of fans, particularly the line “I want to give you a child.”

Swift has not commented on that line in particular but has been open about how the song is definitely linked with her personal life. 

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