If you want to talk original One Direction girlfriends [1], there's only one who is still in play: Eleanor Calder. Louis Tomlinson's girlfriend since 2011 (with a two-year break in there) has been there through it all — world tours, No. 1 songs, heartbreak, and more. The "Walls" singer [2] and his British influencer girlfriend took a break from 2015 to early 2017 (which is when he had his son) but found their way back to each other after his mom — who was very close with Eleanor – passed away [3]. Since then, these two have been inseparable and are too damn cute together. Ahead, we put together a comprehensive though nonexhaustive timeline of their relationship with all of the key points you might have missed if you haven't been a Louis fan since the beginning like some of us (it's me, I'm us). Enjoy!
2011: Louis and Eleanor Start Dating
It was mid-2011 when Louis Tomlinson started dating Eleanor Calder. Louis had recently wrapped up The X Factor with the rest of One Direction and they were quickly seeing themselves become more and more famous. Along the way, he met Eleanor. What's funny is that the fans don't really know how they met. Many theories have floated around about it. One claims Louis's bandmate Harry Styles introduced them. One claims they met through another mutual friend. One claims someone in Eleanor's family worked with the band and introduced them. We don't know for sure, but we know the first time they were seen together publicly was in September 2011 for bandmate Niall Horan's birthday.
August 2012: Louis and Eleanor Enjoy the London Olympics
When the Summer Olympics landed in London, Louis and Eleanor couldn't resist taking in a bit of the action, which was one of their rare outings together that got rarer over the years. They were spotted supporting the British team ahead of One Direction's performance at the Closing Ceremony [5].
November 2012: They Celebrate 1 Year Together
Eleanor shared this photo in November 2012, wishing Louis a happy one-year anniversary and telling him she loved him.
2012-2015: Eleanor Spends Time on Tour With Louis
Whenever she could, Eleanor joined Louis on tour with One Direction and travelled the entire world with them over the years. Though Louis was away working for many months out of the year, Eleanor was largely still based in England finishing her degree. She graduated from the University of Manchester in 2014 with a degree in sociology and Louis quietly attended her graduation ceremony [6] to show his support.
August 2013: One Direction's Movie Comes Out
One Direction: This Is Us was released in Summer 2013, and Eleanor was on hand to celebrate with Louis. This year and the year prior are when Louis and Eleanor were most public about their relationship, but as it progressed, they got more and more private, sharing fewer photos of themselves on social media and keeping a lower profile. Louis mentioned Eleanor in interviews from time to time [7] and would share how well she dealt with his crazy lifestyle and dedicated fans but often refrained from spilling too much about their relationship, opting to keep Eleanor sheltered and keep their private life private.
July 2014: Louis's Mom Gets Married
In July 2014, Louis's mom, Johannah, got remarried, and Eleanor and Louis acted as maid of honour and best man. To put this into perspective, Johannah at the time had four daughters but asked Eleanor to be her maid of honour alongside her son. Louis's bandmates Harry Styles, Liam Payne, and Niall Horan all also attended the big day.
March 2015: Eleanor and Louis Break Up
In March 2015, Eleanor and Louis split up [8]. The official word was that they were struggling to make the relationship work with Louis's hectic touring and work schedule.
2015-2016: The Off Years
After Louis and Eleanor broke up, Eleanor devoted her time to growing her influencer status, becoming a staple at fashion shows and even starting her own fashion site with friend Max Hurd. Louis, on the other hand, had a short-lived romance with LA-based stylist Briana Jungwirth, resulting in their son, Freddie Reign [9]. Louis then started dating actress Danielle Campbell in late 2015, and they stayed together through the following year. The timeline of the end of their relationship gets a little hazy — in a since-deleted Instagram, Danielle wished Louis a love-filled happy birthday on Dec. 24, 2016, but within days they were broken up [10], and by February 2017, Eleanor and Louis were back together [11].
July 2017: Louis Says Part of His Solo Album Will Be About Eleanor
During his One Direction days, Louis wrote music about Eleanor, because of course you write about your feelings. "Love You Goodbye," which was on the band's last album, Made in the A.M., was about his breakup with Eleanor, which Louis briefly mentioned on Good Morning America [12] in 2015. However, it's hard to write truly personal music when you're part of a group, so it wasn't until Louis's solo career that he could truly write about Eleanor. In a 2017 interview, he told The Sun, "There's another song on the album called 'Always You' and it's kind of about my story of travelling the world and just being a f*cking idiot and going, 'Of course it was always you.' Here's the thing, when you listen to my album, you won't have to read between the lines. You'll know what's about Eleanor [13], you'll know what's about me, you'll know what's about the fans, you know it might hint a little bit about the relationship with my mum."
2018: Eleanor Shares a Rare Photo of Louis on Instagram
Despite Eleanor and Louis being together pretty much 24/7, they have remained extremely private about their relationship. More than ever, they keep to themselves, largely to avoid any conflict with fans, who haven't always been welcoming to their relationship.
January 2020: Louis Says He Plans to Marry Eleanor Some Day
Louis and Eleanor have definitely had their ups and downs in their near-nine-year relationship, but in January, Louis told The Sun that she's it for him. "One day, yeah, I'd imagine [we'll get married]. If you're asking me if I'm going to marry her? Yes, I think so! And more kids, I'd say so."
2020 and Beyond
Louis and Eleanor have spent all of 2020 together in lockdown in the UK, with Eleanor frequently sharing Instagram snaps and stories of their shared dogs, Bruce and Clifford. Though neither publicly shares much about their relationship anymore, she is still a staple at Louis's events in support and he is happy to have her at his side.
