Ellie Goulding admits some of her relationships in her twenties were ‘disasters’

Ellie Goulding says her relationships in her twenties were ‘disasters’.

The singer, 33, tied the knot with art dealer Caspar Jopling, 28, last year but admitted some of her previous relationships – which included DJ Greg James, DJ Skrillex, McFly’s Dougie Poynter and actor Jeremy Irvine – were a waste of time.

There were also rumoured relationships with Ed Sheeran and even Prince Harry. 

Speaking to PEOPLE, she said: ‘Twenties was just a disaster in so many ways. I had these relationships at the time that were everything. 

‘A couple years later, I’m like, “Why did I waste their time and mine by thinking it was something more than it was?”. 

‘I clearly really needed that comfort and someone to be there for me. When I think back to some of the parties and people I was with, I’m like, “What the hell were you doing?” It’s like a whole other girl.’

Ellie also admitted she is happier and more confident in her thirties than she ever was in her twenties.   

The Starry Eyed singer sings about being ‘used’ on the track How Deep Is Too Deep on her new album Brightest Blue.

Other lyrics on the feisty single include ‘oh, I could do better baby, let’s be honest’ and ‘waiting for another one you don’t have to love’.  

Ellie also has cryptic lyrics on her new track, Bleach, where she sings ‘I tried to fix your heart’ and ‘you just loved to lie’. 

This is the star’s first new album in five years and her last release was Delirium in 2015.  

Talking about Brightest Blue, which is released on Friday, Ellie told Entertainment Weekly: ‘There’s a couple of songs where I’m still talking about finding that perfect person and being disillusioned by love — that’s still my favourite kind of writing. 

‘I love writing about heartbreak; any kind of injustice that happens in love and between two people is always interesting to me. 

‘All these songs were part of this discovery of myself, learning to love myself a bit more, respect myself and not need anyone else. I think that was really important to me.’