Think back to 2023, when Taylor Swift was fresh off of her breakup with Joe Alwyn after six years but hadn’t yet crossed paths with a friendship bracelet-wielding Travis Kelce. Of course, any Swiftie who’s ever clowned remembers her passionate but short-lived romance with The 1975’s Matty Healy — the breakup was the inspiration behind The Tortured Poets Department. Two years later, they have both moved on, but Healy’s mom still has thoughts. So what did Denise Welch say about Swift, and why is she speaking out now?
What Matty Healy’s Mom Said About The ‘Tricky’ Taylor Swift Situation
When The Tortured Poets Department came out in April 2024, Swifties like myself thought we were getting a Joe Alwyn breakup album. So imagine our surprise when the most heartwrenching lyrics were actually about her split from Matty Healy. Now, imagine what it was like for Healy’s mom, Denise Welch, witnessing all the relentless hate he was getting and not being able to defend him.
She seemed to make her feelings about the “Guilty as Sin?” songwriter quite clear when she appeared on Watch What Happens Live on July 24. When Andy Cohen asked her about it, she replied:
Obviously, on pain of death can I talk about that episode, but not being her mother-in-law is a role that I’m glad that I lost.
Yikes! The audience was audibly shocked by the extreme shade from Matty Healy’s mom, and perhaps out of concern of incurring the wrath of the Swifties, Denise Welch quickly added:
Not that I have anything against her at all. It was just — it was tricky.
Matty Healy’s mom doesn’t seem to agree with Taylor Swift’s version of events, and she suggested that while the one-sided view of the breakup was unfair, everyone has since moved forward. She continued:
Listen, you’re not allowed to say anything and then she writes a whole album about it. But Matty has taken it all in completely good grace. He’s very happy with his amazing fiancée … We’ve moved on.
The 1975 frontman got engaged to Gabbriette Bechtel in June 2024 after they were first linked in September 2023. Taylor Swift, meanwhile, found love with Travis Kelce. So, if everyone’s moved on, why is Denise Welch just now talking about the breakup?
More than two years have passed since the release of TTPD, but Matty Healy’s mom allegedly still feels the pain of what her son endured. According to a source for US Weekly:
Denise is still Matty’s mum at the end of the day, and it was bloody hard for her to stay quiet during the whole ordeal. Now that time has gone by, she’s saying what she can because she knows that her son got hurt.
Since time has passed and new relationships are solidified, the emotions of the Spring 2023 events aren’t as fresh and painful, but Denise Welch certainly hasn’t forgotten. The source continued:
You can’t blame a mum for standing up for her child…. Any mum can imagine what it would feel like — but then you have to multiply it by a million because of how famous [Taylor] is. I wish I could say she’s used to it, but she’s not. It’s a horrible thing to have the most famous person in the world saying that your son broke her heart when it was the other way around, and then you can’t even defend yourself. She’s saying the mother-in-law stuff because that’s where Matty thought it was headed. She’s entitled to her opinion.
Breakups can definitely be tricky, and the two people involved often aren’t the only ones affected. Hopefully, Matty Healy and his mom can continue moving forward. Yet only time will tell if Taylor Swift will pull from that well again in any of her other upcoming music or other projects.
