After weeks of speculation (and denials) that she and boy-band beau Justin Timberlake have broken up, Britney Spears acknowledged Monday that, yes, she's not "in an intense relationship with anyone" right now.
While speaking during a press conference in London to promote her film Crossroads, the 20-year-old pop thongbird was mainly mum about her love life. In fact, Spears' handlers asked journalists in advance not to ask questions about her personal life.
But one reporter couldn't resist, asking Spears whether she was involved in an "intense relationship." She then replied, "No, I would not say I was in an intense relationship with anyone at the moment."
If she was hoping to silence the tabloids, this wasn't it. Up until Monday, Spears, her publicist--and even her mother--had all dismissed rumors that Britney and Justin were on the outs. Spears initially told MTV Europe that she and the 21-year-old 'N Syncer were still together. And her spokeswoman then followed up by saying "they love each other very much and have not broken up."
So far, Congress has not expressed any desire to have Britney testify on the matter. But the pop starlet's love life has certainly come under intense scrutiny over the past several weeks. The New York Post's Page Six gossip column first reported the breakup two weeks ago, and it has since provided a near daily play-by-play on Britney and Justin's activities. (Britney dancing in New York clubs...with other men! Justin hugging a "mystery brunette"!)
Then, last week, Us Weekly splashed the duo on its cover, with the screaming headline "Britney & Justin: It's Over." The magazine claimed Timberlake broke up with Spears over the phone before an 'N Sync performance in Tacoma, Washington, earlier this month.
The tabloids reported that the relationship suffered from conflicting schedules, a difficulty Spears' publicist, Lisa Kasteler, acknowledged. "The demands on their time have naturally created a significant time apart which could be misconstrued as a more permanent situation," she said.
On Monday, Spears also spoke about the trials of living a very public life--which had only been exacerbated by her relationship with Timberlake.
"People talk about my private life," she told ITV television. "That goes with what I do. You have to accept that. But if they ask about it, I say it's none of your business."
It's only natural the public has been interested. Spears and Timberlake had been unofficially crowned the queen and king of teen pop since pairing up more than two years ago. They've known each other since the early 1990s, when then 11-year-old Britney and 12-year-old Justin were cast members on the new Mickey Mouse Club.
Since taking their coupledom public at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards, the twosome vacationed together and even reportedly shared a house in the Hollywood Hills.