The moment Lily Allen's new album dropped the hunt began for 'Madeline'. She's now shared her story.

Lily Allen has delivered what is arguably the most talked-about celebrity breakup album since Lemonade, detailing the collapse of her marriage to David Harbour.

Now, we knew her split from Harbour was messy — they were the unlikely cool-couple with a Vegas wedding and the Brooklyn brownstone that made it into Architectural Digest — but nobody, and I mean nobody, expected this level of scorched-earth.

The album, entitled West End Girl gives us the full, raw story of the split, from the alleged request for an open marriage ("since my husband went astray") to the devastating feeling of being emotionally manipulated ("You let me think it was me in my head"). 

Then came the jaw-dropping details in songs like 'Pussy Palace,' where she recounts finding a shoebox containing a trove of sex toys, lubricant, and "hundreds of Trojans."

It's a full-spectrum portrait of a relationship disintegrating into emotional chaos.

Watch: Lily Allen talks about her journey to becoming comfortable about her sexuality. Post continues after video.

But the moment that truly sent the internet into overdrive and became the biggest talking point wasn't the marriage imploding — it was the naming of the other woman.

Enter 'Madeline'. 

In the song 'Madeline,' Lily drops the line that launched a thousand social media searches: "We had an arrangement / Be discreet and don't be blatant."

On another track on the album titled 'Tennis', Allen details finding messages to another woman: "I read your texts, and now I regret it… If it was just sex, I wouldn't be jealous. You won't play with me, and who's Madeline?" 

"We had an arrangement/Be discreet and don't be blatant," the chorus of the song goes. "There had to be payment/It had to be with strangers/But you're not a stranger, Madeline."

Immediately, the hunt for 'Madeline' began, despite Lily's team quickly clarifying that the name is a "fictional character" and a composite of different people, rather than a single individual. 

Image: Getty

It became, in my opinion, a depressing spectacle online: people focused intensely on unmasking the woman, rather than scrutinising the famous man accused of allegedly breaking the rules of their arrangement. The collective energy was focused on finding 'the mistress'.

And now, 'Madeline' has spoken. Well, not Madeline, but the woman widely speculated to be the inspiration — costume designer Natalie Tippett. 

Natalie Tippett, 34, was working in the costume department on the 2021 Netflix film We Have A Ghost while Harbour, 50, starred. Their alleged affair reportedly began not long after filming started. 

When it comes to the drama surrounding the song, Tippett is well aware, and she finds the whole thing "a little bit scary". 

"Of course I've heard the song," Tippett told Daily Mail. 

"But I have a family and things to protect. I have a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, and I understand this is going on. It's a little bit scary for me." 

Image: Instagram/natalie_tippett

When asked specifically about Lily Allen referencing her text messages on the album, Tippett simply responded: "Yeah, I just don't feel comfortable talking about it at the moment."

So there's that. 

When an artist drops an album as honest as this, the internet reaction is inevitable. Ultimately, we can't help but be obsessed with finding the "truth" behind the fiction. 

But I can't help but think that this is why we can't have nice things. Can we just appreciate the music for what it is? 

Apparently not.

Feature Image: Getty.