Secrets of the A-list from the editor who saw it all: Truth about the curse of Hello! and what really goes on at Hollywood weddings

From splashing millions on exclusive interviews with A-listers to scoring the inside scoop on Hollywood weddings, as editor-in-chief of Hello! Magazine, Rosie Nixon was given access to the celebrity world like no other.  

From 2008 to 2023, Rosie, who lives in Surrey, spent her 15-year tenure chronicling the lives of the A-list elite – a role shrouded in the utmost of secrecy. 

During her time in the role, unconstrained by the bounds of a typical 9 to 5, Rosie found herself with unparalleled access into ‘countless’ weddings of A-listers, from the likes of Robbie Williams to Peaches Geldof and Jack Osbourne.  

She also enjoyed the odd brush with royalty, attending Sam Branson and Isabella Calthorpe’s wedding in 2013 – which, significantly, also boasted Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie on the guest list. 

Through it all, it was paramount not to let slip what was happening to the outside world – lest rival newspapers catch wind of the Hello! exclusives, or security concerns if the general public found out. 

Now, writing for The Sunday Times, Rosie has, for the first time, spilled just a few of the A-list secrets she gathered throughout her career – as well as the truth about the so-called ‘curse of Hello!’, a term coined by the Daily Mail. 

As she recalled the eve of Robbie Williams’ wedding to Ayda Field in 2010, Rosie revealed just how under wraps the wedding was, writing: ‘Even the close family and friends being flown in from around the globe have no idea the couple are about to tie the knot.’

Revealing just a small insight into the occasion, she recalled how Robbie recreated the moment he proposed with a pack of playing cards, how a huge balloon arch was brought in for the couple – all while their eight dogs prepared to act as bridesmaids.  

And if that wasn’t enough, Rosie was then forced to consider ordering a no-fly zone above the property after rival press outlets were heard arriving via helicopter. 

Rosie joined Hello! Magazine in 2008 – and had ‘never before’ experienced such access to the high society world and its connections. 

In the Sunday Times piece, she writes: ‘I had never before paid celebrities for exclusives and was shocked when one former Hello! editor told me, “It’s like Monopoly money here.”

‘Deals could regularly reach six figures for a period of time when we were selling hundreds of thousands of copies per week… Some celebrities may brag they received an eye-watering sum to their friends, but I know the truth.’

Rosie also discussed the famed ‘curse of Hello!’ – referring to the theory that celebrity couples who have the magazine covering their wedding were more likely to split.

The shortest marriage was reality TV star Kim Kardashian, who divorced basketball player Kris Humphries after 72 days.

Other ill-fated cover stars include Westlife’s Brian McFadden and Kerry Katona, as well as Boyzone’s Ronan Keating and wife Yvonne.

Telling the truth about the ‘curse’ once and for all, Rosie shared that such a theory has never been backed up by data – or the fact that, unlike most, all these couples deal with the pressure of being in the public eye.  

Just one of the lavish ceremonies covered by Hello! included Peaches Geldof’s wedding to musician Thomas Cohen in September 2012 at her father Sir Bob Geldof’s estate in Kent. 

With the likes of Jools Holland performing, Rosie found it ‘hard to believe’ that Peaches chose to join the Hello! team to look through the wedding pages of the upcoming spread on her wedding night itself. 

Tragically, 19 months later, Peaches was found dead from a heroin overdose at the age of 25. 

Rosie found herself in another surreal situation just one month later on Jack Osbourne’s wedding day in October that year. 

Again trying to dodge the world’s paparazzi, Rosie said she ended up ferrying the entire Osbourne family around on a golf buggy at the Hawaii hotel complex. 

At one point, Rosie even found herself being yelled at by Ozzy Osbourne after they accidentally stood by the wrong side of the hotel – and found themselves next to the rubbish heap.  

When news of Ozzy’s death was announced in July, Rosie’s tribute was one that spoke of their personal relationship.

She wrote on her Instagram account: ‘I’ll never forget the few days I spent in the bosom of the Osbourne family back in 2012. We were in Hawaii for Jack Osbourne’s wedding to Lisa Stelly, I was in my former role as editor.

‘Ozzy’s humour kept us all highly entertained – most of it unpublishable, of course – that’s a story for another day. And I’ll never forget Sharon’s kindness.

‘Ozzy had zero of the demands that typically accompany rock stars. He made me feel like part of the family. I’m sending love to Sharon, Aimee, Jack, Kelly and all of his family at this time.

‘Rest in Rock’n’Roll – a legend of our times.’

Life at the helm of Hello! was clearly not for the faint-hearted – as Rosie immediately followed up the exclusive coverage of Robbie’s wedding with a red-eye flight and preparation of a 35-page spread, selling 500,000 copies. 

Much of the time was spent in financial negotiations with rival magazines – including the battle for coverage of Wayne and Coleen Rooney’s 2008 wedding, where they lost out to OK! Magazine. 

Other coverage included the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011, followed by that of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry in 2018. 

In 2022, Rosie was at the WellChild Awards in London when news broke at 6.30pm that Queen Elizabeth II had died. 

What followed was a whole night of work, leading to a 116-page issue of the magazine. 

Rosie, who recently celebrated turning 50, lives in Surrey with her husband Callum and their two sons. 

She now hosts retreats to ‘reinvent midlife’ and is editor of The Column magazine at the Corinthia Hotel in London. 

Last year, Rosie wrote about her experience with perimenopause in a piece for the Telegraph, revealing how she managed her symptoms even without HRT. 

After experiencing symptoms such as bouts of insomnia, hot flushes, overwhelming feelings of anxiety and brain fog, it was Gabby Logan who was first to point out she could be perimenopausal. 

‘At the time, I was the editor-in-chief of Hello! magazine, a position I had held for many years,’ Rosie wrote.

‘I had even spearheaded the Menopause Workplace Pledge campaign with the charity Wellbeing of Women, to see women suffering with menopause symptoms better supported by employers. 

‘I hugged Gabby, and had a private cry – another thing happening regularly – because I finally felt validated.’

Even today, having stepped down from her role at Hello! last year after experiencing burnout, Rosie remains close to some of the celebrities she once covered during her time at the magazine. 

In recent months, she’s attended events alongside the likes of Spencer Matthews, Dame Joan Collins and Dame Kelly Holmes.  

Following her time at the magazine, Rosie has released her new novel Bad Influencer – inspired by the time she spent brushing shoulders with celebrities. 

Speaking about her time at Hello! on her Instagram account, Rosie called it ‘one of the most fun and fabulous chapters of my working life’.

She added: ‘And I’ll always look back fondly on the experiences I had and the treasured friendships made. 

‘I decided to reflect on this time to publicise my new novel Bad Influence which is set in the celebrity influencer world and although all fictional (honest!) I realised I’d lived the research.’

Rosie Nixon’s new novel, Bad Influence, is out now.