Noel Gallagher lifts the lid on his divorce and makes heartbreaking admission

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Noel Gallagher and Sara MacDonald
Noel Gallagher and Sara MacDonald's marriage has collapsed (Image: WireImage)

Noel Gallagher insists he is looking back on his divorce with no anger despite his marriage giving him “20-odd years” of complete calm in his life after he ditched drugs and partying.

The former Oasis star and songwriter, 56, said he is trying not to “overthink” his ups and downs, like he has done throughout his life – from being on the dole in Manchester to being beaten by his abusive father and then landing millions of pounds as a member of one of the history’s biggest rock groups. In an emotional interview, the High Flying Birds frontman also admitted his favourite songs are about druggy rockers, suicide and love, but insisted he is not a depressive character.

Noel, who announced in January he had split from his wife of 22 years Sara MacDonald, 52, said when asked about his life’s philosophy: “I don’t overthink. Things happen and you move on. I’ve always been like, ‘The good times aren’t going to last that long, so make the most of them.’ And the bad times aren’t going to last that long either, you just go along, and you’re cruising, and the good bits are the bits that you enjoy – whether it’s up or down, or you’re just existing and it’s calm.”

Referring to his marriage breakdown, he added: “I had that for about 20-odd years until recently, and yeah, it’s been good, I enjoyed it.” Dad-of-three Noel – who has sons Donovan, 16, and Sonny, 13, with former publicist Sara, as well as daughter Anaïs, 23, with his 57-year-old former wife Meg Matthews – also looked back on his ‘turbulent’ time with drugs, admitting he switched them for being “sozzled” every day before he had his first kid.

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Noel Gallagher lifts the lid on his divorce and makes heartbreaking admission (Dave Benett/Getty Images for Louis Vuitton)

When asked on the Take 5 podcast show in Australia if he cut back on them when he first became a father, he added: “Of course. I’d given up real drugs be then. It was going to be a month, then it became a couple of months, then it was like, ‘I like this, I like this now, just being a bit sozzled all day,’ then eventually it becomes like a different lifestyle.

'I'm spending £20k on a new bathroom - but won't help my brother out with cash''I'm spending £20k on a new bathroom - but won't help my brother out with cash'

There were a couple of years from 1998 that were a bit turbulent, and it’s very telling I’ve never got back into drugs. “I’ve got an amazing daughter – she’s like 23, going on 35. She was born out of the ’90s and I look at her and think, “That’s quite a good thing to have created.”’

Noel also reflected about losing his circle of hard-partying friends: “The world changes and life changes. The Internet happened. And everything moved into the modern era. “We had a bit of a tight but big circle of friends and everyone kind of dissipates and moves on with their lives. It’s not uncommon.” Whilst Noel has changed, his brother Liam continues to party hard on his solo shows.

The brothers have been estranged ever since a furious bust-up between the pair at their last concert in Paris in 2009, which resulted in the demise of the legendary Britpop group. Frontman Liam, 51, has just announced the ‘Definitely Maybe’ 30th anniversary tour, without Noel, with guitarist Paul ‘Bonehead’ Arthurs, the only other member joining the jaunt next June, and he’s repeatedly said he’s keen to reunite with his brother. Noel is currently on tour in Europe but will return to the UK for gigs in December with dates including shows in London, Leeds and Glasgow.

Mark Jefferies

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