They first locked eyes in the Seventies when the famous singer walked into the young hair assistant’s salon.And Lulu and John Frieda soon became the ‘It couple’ of that era after they married in 1977 in front of showbiz royalty; Elton John, Tom Jones and Ringo Starr.The couple, who divorced after 14 years, quickly settled into blissful married life and welcomed their son Jordan, 49.Yet when Frieda’s haircare brand began to pick up after styling the likes of Princess Diana and Joanna Lumley, it marked the start of their complicated love story.Famed for his anti-frizz hair products and acrimonious divorce from Lulu, Frieda died aged 75 on her 78th birthday this week.Months before his tragic death, Frieda admitted he ‘never stopped loving’ his ex-wife after she was left blindsided by their ‘painful’ divorce.When the famous hairstylist’s business skyrocketed shortly after Lulu suffered a miscarriage, Frieda walked away from their marriage in 1991. Lulu and John Frieda, who died this week, had a complicated love story after they divorced in 1991 after 14 years of marriage (pictured in 1999) Famed for his anti-frizz hair products and acrimonious divorce with Lulu, Frieda passed away aged 75 on her 78th birthday this week (pictured together on their wedding day in 1976)’We’re not getting along, we’ve nothing in common,’ Lulu claimed Frieda told her. ‘We never did have anything in common. I know exactly where I’m going and I know exactly what I want in my life. I want out.’Lulu, who was married to Bee Gees’ Maurice Gibb from 1969 to 1973, has previously told how she was left blindsided by the ‘excruciating and painful’ divorce. ‘I was in denial of my marriage going wrong,’ she told The Telegraph in 2002. ‘I didn’t see us drifting apart, I always thought there would be signs. Perhaps there were. I just didn’t see them.’She added: ‘That was a very painful time in my life. It was excruciating. I thought I was dying. I thought I would die without my last husband. Quite clearly, I survived.’Yet she refused to badmouth her husbands, stating: ‘I love Maurice, I love John. You can’t love somebody and then deny what you once had. It was real at the time. And with every relationship you learn, you grow.’ While she was heartbroken by the divorce from Frieda, her family were the opposite.’They hated the way I’d carried a torch for John,’ she recalled. ‘They’d also seen how it had triggered years of introspection, therapy and counselling.’Long after their divorce, Frieda and Lulu reunited and managed to overcome their differences and have a friendship. ‘It’s not easy being with one person. I’ve had two marriages to two amazing guys,’ Lulu recalled.’Now, down the line, I see they had their time and I had skewed vision on how they should be. Also, on how to do it. I thought they would just be. Maybe I’m just not the marrying kind. Now I’m not interested.’ Months before his tragic death, Frieda admitted he ‘never stopped loving’ his ex-wife after she was left blindsided by their ‘painful’ divorce (pictured with their son Jordan) Lulu and Frieda soon became the ‘It couple’ of that era after they married years later in front of showbiz royalty; Elton John (left, with Frieda in 2015), Tom Jones and Ringo StarrWhile Frieda, who married Frances Avery Agnelli in 2019, spoke less about their split, when he did it was only ever praise for Lulu.Speaking about their divorce in a rare conversation months before his death, Frieda said: ‘Whatever happened, whatever the reasons, you never stop loving that person. ‘You may be angry, you may be worried about things, you may feel something happened that you didn’t like. But you have not left that person. I never stopped loving her. She’s the mother of my son. She’s a great person.’He also shared with The Times a sweet encounter him and Lulu shared earlier this year: ‘She is an incredible person. And if I’d not been uptight, paranoid, not wanting to be “Mr Lulu”… But I was a young guy’.Frieda’s death was announced on the salon’s official Instagram page: ‘It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that our dear John passed away peacefully…surrounded by his family.’John was more than a mentor to us; he was a true icon of the hair industry. He was the person who taught us everything, believed in us, and made us better.’His talent and passion touched so many, and his legacy will live on in every single one of us. We will continue to do him proud.’Our thoughts are with John’s family and everyone who loved him. Rest in peace, John. You will be forever in our hearts.’Born Alan Howard Frieda in Kenton, Middlesex, in 1951, the British businessman said he never intended to become a hairstylist but eventually followed in his father’s footsteps and started working at his salon in Ealing, London. Long after their divorce, Frieda and Lulu reunited and managed to overcome their differences and have a friendship (pictured in 2002) When the hairstylist’s business skyrocketed shortly after Lulu suffered a miscarriage, Frieda left their marriage in 1991. He later married Avery Agnelli (right, with Frieda in 2019)He later moved to House of Leonard, where he changed his name after discovering another Alan already worked there because ‘you can’t have two hairdressers going by the same name’.After he was handpicked by the Sixties’ ‘super stylist’ Leonard Lewis to be his personal assistant, Frieda started working with British Vogue and famously styled Princess Diana’s blonde pixie for her engagement portrait in 1981.Frieda launched his first hair salon in his mid-20s, before creating the famous Frizz Ease range.By the time he sold the brand to a Japanese company for £260million in 2002, it was already on its way to becoming a household name.The haircare entrepreneur continued running his eponymous salons and, by 2025, was ranked fourth on a list of the UK’s wealthiest beauty industry leaders alongside Charlotte Tilbury and The Fragrance Shop founder, Sanjay Vadera.Frieda later married Avery Agnelli, widow of Fiat heir Giovanni Agnelli, and became a stepfather to her daughter, Asia. They went on to welcome two children, Jackson and Leyla.Paying tribute to Frieda, Asia shared several poignant shots of him over the years, with the caption: ‘Sadly my J has passed away. Today we lost the best man to ever exist.’I share this because I know he touched the lives of so many.’