Is marriage split taking its toll on stick-thin Cheryl Cole?

By Sara Nathan

Sickness: Cheryl looked thin as she arrived for an interview yesterday. The singer has recently suffered from a bout of bronchitis


Despite wearing a brave smile, it seems her marriage woes have finally taken their toll.

Making one of her first public appearances since her split from cheating husband Ashley, Cheryl Cole could not hide the fact she looks worryingly thin.

Arriving for an interview on BBC Radio 1 yesterday, Mrs Cole, 26, appeared to have shed pounds off her already tiny frame.

And despite a grin for waiting fans, the singer's face looked sunken after she spent the past week at home in bed with bronchitis.

The Girls Aloud star arrived at the studios in Maida Vale, West London, to promote her new single, Parachute, the third track off her number one album, 3 Words.

Mrs Cole, who admitted to suffering from a hangover after a night out with her girlfriends, said she was flattered by a recent poll which placed her as the most inspirational woman in the world.

But perhaps in a veiled jibe about her marriage to Chelsea footballer Ashley, she said: 'I love inspiring other women.

'But I'm still a human being, so obviously there are going to be times I still make mistakes - a bad choice or a bad outfit or whatever, but I'm hoping that still is an inspiration to women.'


Raided the alarm: X Factor host Dermot O'Leary discovered the message on his voicemail


Meanwhile it was revealed yesterday that detectives are investigating a threat against Mrs Cole in an answer phone message left on X Factor host Dermot O'Leary's mobile phone.

The presenter was believed to have raised the alarm after picking up the threat on his voicemail left by an unknown caller.

A City of London Police spokesman confirmed an investigation had been launched into an 'offensive message'.

He said: 'We are investigating claims of an offensive message being left on a mobile telephone. It follows a complaint from a member of the public.'

O'Leary, 36, joined the ITV show in 2007 - a year before the Girls Aloud star's arrival as judge.

The singer announced last month that she and her footballer husband Ashley Cole were splitting following reports that the England and Chelsea star had been repeatedly unfaithful.

Earlier this month, Cole, 26, was forced to pull out of a string of singing appearances after being struck down with a bout of bronchitis.

Security for The X Factor judges was apparently increased in 2008 after a tracking device was put into Simon Cowell's car.

Cowell was left shaken when he found the device in his £140,000 Bentley after seeing a man lurking nearby.

Cole is said to have been made aware of the threat but has not listened to the phone message.

A source said that O'Leary was 'horrified' when he heard the threat.

'He thought at first it was a sick wind-up, but soon realised there was something more sinister going on,' the source told The Sun.


source :dailymail