Nicole's abortion revelation 'tore Robbie apart'

Chart star Robbie Williams was "torn apart" when former fiancee Nicole Appleton went public about her abortion, he said today.

Although he says he backed the singer's decision to write about it in her book, he admits it was hard to cope with seeing it "in black and white".

He was opening up about the incident in an interview on DJ Sara Cox's Radio 1 Breakfast Show broadcast this morning.

Appleton broke her silence about the abortion in the book Together which she wrote jointly with sister Natalie.

She claimed she had been forced into the operation for the sake of her career by management.

"I spoke to her probably eight or nine months before the book came out and she said that she was gonna do it - and I was completely behind her.

"If there's something that's so deep-rooted within yourself that you feel it would feel better to you that you exorcised it and got it off your chest, because secrets can make you sick and secrets can make you feel terrible... then I'm completely behind her.

"It was really sad though, it was really sad, because she asked me about it and it was 'well, good on you'.

Robbie, who was in LA when the contents of the book were revealed, continued: "Obviously, I was gonna come back to England and there was gonna be questions like this asked so I needed to know what was going on with it and it really upset me, and tore me apart a little bit.

"I had to phone her up and go I'm not in a mood or anything, I still back you. But it was actually upsetting to see it written in black and white."

He said it was a difficult subject: "It's never discussed really other than on Panorama."

Williams denied the song Sexed Up on his forthcoming album Escapology was about Nicole, who now has a child Gene with his rival Liam Gallagher.

He added: "I wouldn't like to say who it's about because I'm trying to be a gentleman."

Multi-millionaire Williams, who recently spoke about how he was on anti-depressants, said he bumped into Nicole recently and they exchanged pleasantries.

He said: "I actually walked into the rehearsal room and the band turned round and went (makes strangled noise).

"But I'm always scared that Liam's gonna be there and come over and batter me."

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