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going steady

12 surprising celebrity couples you never knew were a thing

“They went out?!” – you.

 1. Sandra Bullock and Ryan Gosling

bullock gosling EMPICS Entertainment EMPICS Entertainment

The couple starred opposite each other in the 2002 thriller Murder By Numbers and had a brief romance between 2002 and 2003.

2. Jamie Dornan and Keira Knightley

'The Jacket' Private Screening - The Rex cinema in Soho PA Archive / Press Association Images PA Archive / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

Before he became a household name thanks to The Fall, Jamie Dornan went out with Keira Knightley for two years back in 2003.

Who knew, eh?

3. Moby and Natalie Portman

mobyportman Chase Rollins / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tammie Arroyo/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment Chase Rollins / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tammie Arroyo/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tammie Arroyo/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment

Yes, Natalie Portman went out with Moby back in 2001. It makes no sense to us either.

The musician told Spin that he was on the receiving end of a bit of abuse following the romance.

I guess in some people’s eyes, [nerds] might be mildly sexy — and, as a nerd, I’m certainly happy to enjoy some of the effects of that — but as far as the very brief affair I had with Natalie, it’s made me the target of a lot of nerd wrath. You can’t date Luke Skywalker’s mom and not have them hate your guts.

Eek.

4. Lisa Kudrow and Conan O’Brien

lisaconan LuMarPhoto / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Chase Rollins/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment LuMarPhoto / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Chase Rollins/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Chase Rollins/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment

These two dated in the early 1990s before they hit the big time. As Kudrow explained:

He was really smart, really funny, and he thought I was funny.

Well then. (Side-note: ‘Kudronan’ is solid couple name, right?)

5. Liam Neeson and Helen Mirren

liamneeson Doug Peters / Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment // Jacques Brinon/AP/Press Association Images Doug Peters / Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment // Jacques Brinon/AP/Press Association Images / Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment // Jacques Brinon/AP/Press Association Images

Mirren and Neeson! This is not a drill.

The couple dated for three years back in the 1980s and shared a home in London. Amazing.

6. Zooey Deschanel and Jason Schwartzman

2004 IFP Independent Spirit Awards AFF / EMPICS Entertainment AFF / EMPICS Entertainment / EMPICS Entertainment

The New Girl star dated the actor in the early 2000s. No doubt they both shared a common love of ukeleles and the like.

7. Courteney Cox and Michael Keaton

keatoncox Tammie Arroyo / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Steven Bergman/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment Tammie Arroyo / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Steven Bergman/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Steven Bergman/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment

Cox and Keaton went out for five years before breaking up in 1995. At the time, Cox called the relationship “the most important relationship I’ve ever had” and said Keaton was “the most wonderful person I’ve ever met”.

Aw </3

8. Justin Timberlake and Fergie

SHOWBIZ MTV Awards PA Archive / Press Association Images PA Archive / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

Fergie dated JT when he was 16 years old and she was 23 years old. Needless to say, it didn’t last very long. As she told Cosmopolitan:

Justin and I would go out together and have fun and make out. We went to Hawaii together, but we were never serious. He was Mr. Right Now.

9. Andre Agassi and Barbra Streisand

Barbra Streisand AP / Press Association Images AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

Agassi dated Streisand while he was at the peak of his tennis powers. Agassi wrote about the relationship in his autobiography:

We agree that we’re good for each other, and so what if she’s twenty-eight years older? We’re simpatico, and the public outcry only adds spice to our connection. It makes our friendship feel forbidden, taboo – another piece of my overall rebellion. Dating Barbra Streisand is like wearing Hot Lava.

It didn’t last.

10. Ashley Olsen and Lance Armstrong

ashleylance Tammie Arroyo / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tertius Pickard/AP/Press Association Images Tammie Arroyo / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tertius Pickard/AP/Press Association Images / AFF/EMPICS Entertainment // Tertius Pickard/AP/Press Association Images

Back in 2007, Armstrong and Olsen were spotted on several dates. According to Juliet Macur’s biography of the athlete, the head of Livestrong Foundation advised Armstrong that dating Olsen could harm his image and urged him to end the relationship.

Armstrong was reportedly reluctant to end the relationship…

She’s twenty-one … F**k you.

…but it soon fizzled out anyway.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

11. Alanis Morrissette and Ryan Reynolds

Alanis Morissette - MTV Movie Awards PA Archive / Press Association Images PA Archive / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

You, you, you oughta know that these two were engaged.

12. Whoopi Goldberg and Ted Danson

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Danson and Goldberg were a thing back in the 90s after they met on the set of Made in America. By all accounts, they were absolutely mad for each other, with Danson once remarking:

I’d walk in Whoopi’s shadow for the rest of my life—I adore the woman.

10 viciously funny celebrity-on-celebrity burns >

14 pairs of celebrities you didn’t realise were the same age >

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