Mel B and Cheryl’s ‘flirty’ antics reportedly triggered “total rage” in her now estranged husband Stephen Belafonte.
After Mel alleged that Stephen has abused her both physically and mentally over a number of years in court documents earlier this week, more details about their tumultuous relationship have come out.
According to The Sun, Mel B’s “harmless” banter with fellow X Factor judge Cheryl caused “sex-mad” Stephen to lose his temper backstage at The X Factor in 2014.
A source said, “Mel was taken with Cheryl but it was harmless fun. She’d always come into her dressing room in hardly any clothes while holding her co-star’s hand and grabbing her bum.”
Pals: Mel and Cheryl were the best of friends on the X Factor in 2014 | ITV
“Once she even did it on the stage. It was nothing more than a cheeky game among good friends but Stephen couldn’t stand it and went ballistic. He liked to be in total control of everything. He was deeply uncomfortable with Mel flirting with Cheryl because it didn’t involve him.
“The reaction was totally over the top but it prompted total rage. Around that time she had him banned from The X Factor studios,” they added.
Stephen’s anger started to raise concerns amongst the crew, and senior staff even encouraged Mel to divorce him.
According to reports, Mel and Cheryl’s antics even riled Cheryl’s then husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, however, his reaction was much more controlled.
Both men were eventually told they weren’t welcome at the studios.
Jealous: Stephen didn’t like Mel’s relationship with Cheryl | INSTAGRAM
“Everyone knew about Stephen’s rage and couldn’t understand why something as innocent as this sparked it,” said another source.
“It was the final straw for him. He was never popular among because he behaved extremely unpleasantly. He was very demanding. Eventually he went too far.”
Despite being banned from the studio, Mel’s husband would still try to contact her, bombarding her friends and colleagues with messages until they agreed to let him speak to her.
The news comes after Mel applied for a restraining order against her husband of ten years earlier this week, and in the 20-page statement detailing her allegations, she revealed that she took an overdose while on The X Factor.
Abuse: Mel has filed for a restraining order against Stephen after claiming he physically and emotionally abused her | WENN.com
Mel has claimed that after immediately regretting her decision, she tried to call an ambulance, but Stephen blocked her and locked her in a room, and allegedly screamed “Die, b****.”
When Mel’s driver arrived the next morning for the live X Factor final, he was horrified to find her covered in bruises. The driver immediately took her to a London hospital for treatment before she returned to the show the next day – but, viewers could see that the former Spice Girl looked visibly shaken.
Stephen then flew back to LA, which prompted Simon Cowell and his team to introduce Mel to a divorce lawyer, but, she and Stephen reconciled weeks later.
Meanwhile, Stephen has since “vehemently” denied Mel’s abuse allegations, which his lawyers have described as “outrageous”.
