Carrie Fisher and James Blunt's friendship was unexpected to say the least.
As one of the great Hollywood icons of her generation, actress and writer Carrie rubbed shoulders with countless glittering celebrities - but she enjoyed a particular closeness with You're Beautiful singer, James.
The pair lived together in the 2000s, while James was recording his debut album, and were there for each other during good times and bad. When Carrie sadly passed away from a heart attack in December 2016, at the age of 60, James was left completely devastated and has since channelled his grief into his music.
We take a look at the perhaps unlikely pals' intense friendship, including the romance rumours Carrie was forced to address.
Living together in LA
Opening up during an interview with The Guardian in October 2023, James, now 50, shared the charming story of how he and Carrie first met at Notting Hill's trendy 192 restaurant.
At the time, James was dating a girl whose parents just so happened to be family friends of Carrie's. The pair found themselves seated beside each other at lunch and the rest, as they say, is history.
James recalled: "Carrie's first question was: 'What do you do?' I said: "I've left the army to go to make an album in LA'. Question number two was: 'Where are you going to live?' I said I didn't know. Her reply – the third thing she ever said to me – was: 'Well, you're going to live with me'. So I did just that."
For the first month of their cohabitation, James didn't see all that much of Carrie, however, he did enjoy frequent interactions with her equally legendary mother, Debbie Reynolds, who believed his name was Charlie. James continued: "A month later, I started to see Carrie more. I came home one night and sat on the end of her bed and we talked until morning. After that, whenever I got back from the studio I'd go into her room to talk, no matter if it was 11pm or 3am. She became my best, best friend."
Romance rumours
The closeness Carrie and James shared prompted speculation that there may have been a romantic element to their relationship - but Carrie insisted this was not the case at all.
While discussing their friendship during a 2014 interview Vanity Fair, Carrie, confirmed their connection wasn't a sexual one, explaining: "I became James' therapist. So it would have been unethical to sleep with my patient."
She continued: "He was a soldier. This boy has seen awful stuff. Every time James hears fireworks or anything like that, his heart beats faster, and he gets 'fight or flight'. You know, he comes from a long line of soldiers dating back to the 10th century. He would tell me these horrible stories. He was a captain, a reconnaissance soldier."
Painful loss
James was left utterly bereft by Carrie's death and was 'desperately sad' that his young son would grow up without knowing his godmother. Speaking with People magazine at the time, James said: "She's the most amazing person I know and I'm really desperately sad he won't get to know her but I have many memories, many stories I'll be able to tell him. I don't know if any of them are safe enough to tell on camera!"
The Brit award winner has since channeled his sorrow into his music, with the track Dark Thought, from his latest album Who We Used To Be, inspired by the loss of Carrie.
James told The Sun: "In the song, it's a serious story about when I drive to the house and see a For Sale sign outside and shed a tear. But in real life, it was a funny moment when a star tour bus came along and the tour guide said over the Tannoy, 'And on the left you can see the late, great Carrie Fisher's house and you can see some fans are still paying their respects'. And that was me blubbing by the gate."
You can catch Carrie Fisher: A Life In Ten Pictures at 9pm on Thursday, March 21 on BBC Two.
Do you have a story to share? Email me at julia.banim@reachplc.com. Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.