James Gooding

Biography

British model James Gooding will forever be known as the man who dated one of the world’s most desirable superstars Kylie Minogue. However, his three-year on and off romance with Kylie Minogue that has been played out on the front pages of the world’s press, overshadows his outstanding career as a model. James Gooding's effortless charm, from his pretty boyish face to his laid-back gentle drawl, is addictively and irresistible, which explains how he hooked the pop diva in the first place.

James Gooding lives more like an art student than a model, who makes well over 100 thousand dollars a year. He doesn’t own a car or a flash apartment, currently living in the East End of London that is surrounded by knocked-down buildings, and most of his cash goes on photographic equipment. James Gooding has retired from the main stream modeling business, aspiring to be a professional photographer and an actor.

“Modelling just happened,” James Shrugs, having been discovered at the age of 18 when he accompanied a female friend to the Elite Model Agency. At the time, James was studying law at college, but decided to drop out to pursue the modelling career that took him to New York, where he stayed for three years, Paris and Tokyo.

While James Gooding was modelling in New York, he was one of the most sought-after new boys on the fashion block, fronting campaigns for Tommy Hilfiger, Dolce & Gabanna, Calvin Klein, Paul Smith and L’Oréal, and made a small fortune. Despite his success, he sometimes questions the career. "There's a part of me that wishes I had a skill or trade, that I had become a lawyer. But then, if I had done that, I wouldn't be here now," he says. James felt that modelling was "too passive".

"You're just sitting there waiting for the phone to ring every day. But that does give you the luxury of being able to read a lot and go to the cinema. I just feel that any attempt to move out of the industry is hard. Your agents make a lot of money out of you and stop you from moving on. But I'm glad that I finally did it. It was time." Then, just when James was about to ascend to modelling superstardom, he left New York. “I found modelling monotonous, frustrating and boring. I’d see a huge poster of myself in Times Square and it would freak me out. So I moved to Paris and started taking pictures.”

Jame's success on the other side of the camera is notable; his photographic work has been exhibited alongside that of German fashion photographer Juergen Teller; he recently shot a 14-page fashion story for Tatler magazine with Isabella Blow and a series of photographs of former boxer Michael Watson and wheelchair athlete Tanni Grey-Thompson for the Disability Rights Commission. One American critic described him as "one of the most promising young photographers for years".

James continued modelling part-time for the next five years. Like his model friend Helena Christensen, he started putting all his energies into photography. An exhibition including his work, focusing on the secret world of computer games, toured Europe. In the midst of his portraits of video-games players is a stunning picture of Kylie lying naked in a bath. It was taken in Bali, where they had their holidays together in 2002. (Yes, the one that ended in reports of a wedding ceremony.) It turns out that their affair was over when the shot was taken. But the picture speaks volumes about the intimacy and trust that they once had.

The relationship between James and Kylie started in 1999, when they first met in Los Angeles. Gooding's always too cool for a pop crush attitude intrigued Kylie Minogue, who is a seven years senior of James Gooding, asked him out for dinner. This happend just before Kylie mania boomed. While many men dream of dating pop’s number-one pin-up, for James Gooding the reality was a nightmare. Kylie admits her career killed the relationship, saying: “If I hadn’t been famous, there wouldn’t have been a problem.” It was reported that Kylie had put up with an awful lot of hassle from James during their three-year romance, often resulting in the pop princess being left in tears.

The realtionship finally collapsed and took a nasty turn when James Gooding revealed the private details of their relationship for cash. James Goods claims that Kylie drove him to the brink of suicide by spending the night with Justin Timberlake after the Brits Awards. James Gooding also attacked the pop princess, saying: “Before my eyes Kylie had turned into a self-obsessed, virtually friendless control freak. I was stunned by the full force of her selfishness.” He also told how Kylie went nuts when he confessed he had been sleeping with model Sophie Dahl during their relationship.

Shortly after the split, James checked himself into rehab for alcoholism and drugs. He is now officially cut out of Kylie's life for good. As far as James is concerned, the whole media frenzy surrounding his break-up with Kylie Minogue made him absolutely the most famous male model in the world, and a somewhat hated icon in Britain. His instant celebrity status has also lead to more career oppurtunities. James is currently in a transition to be take on some serious roles in acting business. In terms of romance, he'll just have to look for Ms. Right else where to heal his broken heart.