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How Joe Alwyn Formed a “Very Close” Bond With Taylor Swift’s Family

All along there was some invisible string tying Joe Alwyn to Taylor Swift. After they were spotted on a walk in London, a source told E! New how the actor has become “very close” with Taylor's family.

By Lindsay Weinberg Jan 13, 2021 3:28 AMTags
Watch: Taylor Swift Makes Rare Comment on Joe Alwyn Relationship

As Swifties know all too well, Taylor Swift loves high tea, stories from uni and the West End. 

The singer and her favorite "London Boy," Joe Alwyn, appear to have grown even closer during the pandemic while enjoying strolls around London—and not to mention, co-writing multiple songs for folklore and evermore. 

On Monday, Jan. 11, the lovers were spotted taking a chilly walk in North London Public Park, along with Joe's mom Elizabeth Alwyn. Joe and Taylor held hands as they all bundled up in face masks and coats. Naturally, Tay's was by Stella McCartney. 

Although it was a rare sighting of the private pair, E! News has learned it's far from their first outing in Britain during quarantine.

We're told the "exile" co-writers rang in the New Year together with Joe's family in England, where Taylor has been staying for a few weeks.

A source close to the superstar exclusively tells E! News, "She is back and forth between Nashville and England spending time with her family and with Joe's family. They take walks in the neighborhood and go on hikes to get fresh air." (No scooter rides to report on, though). 

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Taylor Swift & Joe Alwyn: Romance Rewind

Of course, amidst the coronavirus lockdown, they have been "abiding by the rules and not leaving the house much."

However, it's also important for the couple to spend time across the pond with Taylor's family, particularly her mom Andrea Swift, who is said to be undergoing treatment for a brain tumor.

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The insider says, "Her mom's health is always very much on Taylor's mind. She goes back and forth to see her mom and Joe comes along."

She told Variety one year ago that Andrea was diagnosed with a brain tumor while having chemotherapy for breast cancer. The Grammy winner said at the time, "It's just been a really hard time for us as a family."

Despite the emotional experience, the source notes that Taylor, Joe and their families "all seem very close and very happy," telling E! News, "They both know each other's families well and have spent a lot of time getting to know each other."

Part of that intimacy appears to include their songwriting sessions. Speaking with Apple Music's Zane Lowe in December, Tay shared that she and The Favourite actor have "always bonded over music," which led to their collaborations on "coney island," "champagne problems" and "evermore" on her newest album. (He wrote under the pseudonym William Bowery, which has a special secret meaning.)

"Joe and I really love sad songs," the 31 year old revealed. "We've always bonded over music... We write the saddest. We just really love sad songs. What can I say?" 

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She continued, "I say it was a surprise that we started writing together, but in a way, it wasn't because we have always bonded over music and had the same musical tastes."

The "betty" singer also reflected on their four-year relationship back in November, when chatting with Paul McCartney for Rolling Stone. She told him she admired how he was "carving out a human life within a public life, and how scary that can be when you do fall in love and you meet someone, especially if you've met someone who has a very grounded, normal way of living."

Taylor said, "I, oftentimes, in my anxieties, can control how I am as a person and how normal I act and rationalize things, but I cannot control if there are 20 photographers outside in the bushes." 

While comparing the situation to her lyrics on "peace," Taylor explained how she tries to "find bits of normalcy" in her relationship with Joe, 29.

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"In knowing him and being in the relationship I am in now, I have definitely made decisions that have made my life feel more like a real life and less like just a storyline to be commented on in tabloids," she said. "Whether that's deciding where to live, who to hang out with." 

Even though it seems she's found happiness with Joe, that doesn't mean they've taken their love story to the next level. As much as fans theorize they're secretly married, she merely called him her "boyfriend" as recently as December.

On Jan. 10, evermore was back at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. She's nominated for six Grammys at the 2021 ceremony for her July album folklore, but the ceremony has been postponed.

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