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Britney Spears has finally confirmed her steamy past romance with actor Colin Farrell.
While the rumors started flying after their entangled red carpet appearance in 2003, Spears formally detailed their fling for the first time in her memoir “The Woman in Me” — and said she was still reeling from her 2002 split with Justin Timberlake when they met.
The “Toxic” singer reportedly described her time with Farrell as a sultry “two-week brawl.”
“Brawl is the only word for it — we were all over each other, grappling so passionately it was like we were in a street fight,” wrote Spears in her upcoming memoir, according to an early copy obtained Thursday by Time magazine.
Spears explained she was introduced to Farrell through a “club promoter friend” while the actor was filming “S.W.A.T.” in 2002. She privately visited Farrell on set when he was working. And they publicly arrived arm-in-arm at the January 2003 premiere of his film “The Recruit.”
It had been nine months since Spears and Timberlake split — after three years together.
“As I had before when I’d felt too attached to a man, I tried to convince myself in every way that it was not a big deal, that we were just having fun, that in this case I was vulnerable because I wasn’t over Justin yet,” wrote Spears in her book, as reported by Time.
Their united arrival certainly was a big deal to fans, the entertainment press and the pop culture world, as countless photos of the suspected couple — laughing and gazing at each other with Farrell’s arm draped over Spears’ shoulder — hit the news.
Kevin Winter via Getty Images
“We’re not dating,” Farrell told “Entertainment Weekly” reporters at the premiere. “She’s a sweet, sweet girl. There’s nothing going on — just mates.”
The outlet added at the time that Spears left the premiere “as soon as the paparazzi” did. The singer reportedly told “W Magazine” later that year they “kissed” but that her fling with Farrell “was nothing serious.” In her memoir, Spears revealed how she truly felt.
“[F]or a brief moment in time, I did think there could be something there,” she wrote about Farrell, according to Time. “The disappointments in my romantic life were just one part of how isolated I became. I felt so awkward all the time.”
The pop star was at the height of her fame before being placed in a conservatorship by her father in 2008. Her legal battle to dissolve that arrangement and personal ups and downs are set to comprise the lion’s share of her book.
“The Woman in Me” hits shelves and digital bookstores Oct. 24.