George Harrison's Ex-Wife Pattie Boyd Recalled His 'Odd' Jealousy Over Her Career Success

The men of The Beatles had some of the most memorable romances, even forming several power couples of the '70s. One Beatle in particular, George Harrison, had a passionate and troubled relationship with a budding model. Harrison met his ex-wife Pattie Boyd in March 1964, and the young lovers married in January 1966. Despite having their creative careers, vegetarian diet, and interest in mysticism in common, their marriage ended in 1977. In March 2026, Boyd shared a marital problem she faced on an episode of "Miss O'Dell: Abbey Road to Tulsa Time."

Boyd told her friend and podcast host Chris O'Dell that Harrison was jealous of her getting attention from the press. "I know George was rather upset one time when I was on the cover of one of the trashy newspapers, you know, because I was wearing whatever I was wearing — something mad — and he couldn't believe that they would put me on the paper and not him," she recalled. Although Boyd was stunning during her marriage to Harrison, she thought his reaction to her image in the newspaper was strange. "Jealousy comes in many, many different forms," she said. "It's very odd."

Similar to John Lennon and Paul McCartney's relationships, infidelity sparked the end of Pattie Boyd and George Harrison's marriage. Harrison had an affair with Maureen Starkey, the wife of The Beatles drummer Ringo Starr. Although Boyd had an affair with Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood and knew about her husband's infidelity, she drew the line at Harrison and Starkey's relationship. The model considered Starkey a friend and said, "She was the last person I would have expected to stab me in the back. But she did," (via Far Out Magazine).

Boyd had her own admirer during her marriage to Harrison, the former's close friend Eric Clapton. Clapton even dedicated the song "Layla" to her to lament his then-unrequited love. After divorcing Harrison in 1977, Boyd married Clapton in 1979. The former Beatles member wasn't upset that they got together and attended his friend and ex-wife's wedding in Arizona. When asked why he's happy for Boyd and Clapton, Harrison said, "Because he's great. I'd rather she was with him than some dope."

Sadly, Boyd's second marriage ended 10 years later due to Clapton's abuse, alcoholism, and string of affairs, two of which resulted in children. Despite her first and second husband's friendship, Boyd was friends with Harrison until his death in 2001 and considered him a soulmate. She told The Times, "he was always very loving...and he came to see me before he died. If you love somebody you do that," (via Shades of Music).