Quotes

I absolutely love my tattoos. The girls and I decided that the next time Girls Aloud have a No. 1, we'll all get one done. I want us to get something that only makes sense if we all stand in line, though!

The past year [2004] has been the best ever. I feel like I've got a fairy godmother watching over me.

I can't hurt any more than I've been hurt, I can't cry any more than I've cried. I've been to the highest of highs and lowest of lows, so one day I'm going to find my middle ground and be happy.

[on drug addicts] I don't have any sympathy for the addicts. That might sound harsh, but I don't give a f***. If they're in pain because of drugs, it's self-inflicted. You know what you're doing when you take it.

[on Simon Cowell] Simon is the most charismatic man I've ever met -- it's like he's trancing you or something. It's actually quite scary.

I have this pair of grey lounge trousers with a satin waistband which are really unattractive, but so comfy. I sit on the sofa in fluffy slippers and a hoody with a nice cup of hot chocolate. I'm slightly obsessed with hot chocolate. My mother just got me some that has chunks of real chocolate in it. I do that squirty cream thing, too. I'm known for it at The X Factor UK (2004)!

I believe in soulmates, yes, but I believe you also have to work at love. I happen to believe your soulmate doesn't have to be your partner - your soulmate could be your best friend, your sibling, it doesn't have to be the person you marry.

I relate to girls a lot more than I do boys. I just don't get boys, I don't really get men.

[on nearly dying from malaria in 2010] I had no liver function, no kidney function, I was swollen with the fluid, I had no oxygen in my blood. I literally had 24 hours to get fluid out of my body otherwise my insides were going to pack in. You know how sometimes you feel ill and you say, 'I feel like I'm dying?' Well I actually felt like I was dying. I asked the nurse outright - was I going to die? She said, 'There's a possibility.'

The thought of being intimate with someone you don't know really freaks me out. I think men should earn that intimacy.

I don't think I'm a style icon, not at all. Sometimes I just want to rock out in me scruffs and me Uggs. You know, a really comfy old tracksuit with maybe a dollop of ketchup down the front.

[on plastic surgery] I can't get my head around everyone having the same nose, because I think it's the unique things about your face that make you beautiful. I'm not judging, but unless something is really getting you down, it's best not to mess with nature.

[Turning down Simon Cowell's offer of a second shot on US X-Factor] It would take me away from family and my reality, and throw me back into the craziness again.

[Girls Aloud] We've grown into women, and have different lives to the ones we had as young girls. We've achieved far more than any of us ever dared to dream of and, whatever happens next, I know we'll always be in each other's lives.

[Girls Aloud] The first time we were in the press, it was all about our weight and not our music.

[when Simon Cowell first offered her a job as a judge on X-Factor] I wouldn't do X-Factor for all the tea in China.

I was Cheryl, the local girl made good. I was one of their own who was flying the flag for Newcastle, and that meant the world to me.

[after several of Ashley Cole's infidelities came out in the press] You've ruined our marriage, Ashley. I'll not let you ruin me career.

I'd only been out with people who became ugly once I got to know them.

Every day I wake up and I want to go to work and do the job I love, and I know that in this economic climate that is an absolute gift and a privilege.

If something doesn't feel right, I turn it down.

I know what its like on stage, to be judged. Its nerve wracking enough without the buzzer.

Beyonce (Knowles) has a star aura and an incredible presence.

[being a judge] It makes better television if you string out the moment when the big decision is revealed.

Your relationship with your contestants is as important backstage as it is on the live shows.

[the press during her divorce from Ashley Cole] I'd felt like a hunted animal for a long time, but now I was so badly wounded the chase felt more inhumane than ever. I still had my music, and nobody could take that away.

[the press during her fight with malaria] They're ruining my life. But I had to brave the flames to break out of the Hell I was stuck in. I had to do it or lose my mind.

I got lost in darkness for a long time, but now I feel strong and happy again.

[Cheryl's ultimatum after learning of Ashley Cole's infidelity] I don't want you drinking. I don't want you socializing with footballers or the people you were with that night. And I don't want you to deal with that agent of yours anymore. And one other thing. If this ever comes up again I'm divorcing you. You're lucky I came back this time, but if you ever disrespect me again, its over. I'm out of here, and I mean that.

[Will.i.am] There is nothing boring or regular about him, from his geeky glasses and dreadlocks to his intuitive, warm personality. He had a genuine belief in my talent and ability that nobody had ever expressed to me before. Will is one of those people who doesn't just say are you OK? without really meaning it.

[the three words she uses to ID herself] Strength, femininity and independence.

[after hearing Cher Lloyd perform for the first time] You are right up my street!

[Mary Byrne] People like her made me love my job.

[the scandal that emerged after she slapped a toilet attendant] I'd gone through my whole life with trouble around me, yet had never been involved with the police myself until I was at the happiest point in my life.

You have to forget your dignity when you go into hospital. You leave that at the front door and pick it up on the way out.

[discovering her sister was her half-sibling] Gillian had gone from being my sister to my half-sister to not being there at all in the space of about 30 minutes.

Don't let the nerves ruin your chances.

Geordies are so proud of their own.

Don't underestimate girl power.

[saying no to contestants] It makes me die a little bit inside.

[climbing Mt Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief, 2009] I'd had so much colour in my life I wasn't daunted by this challenge at all. I lived my life climbing mountains of other kinds. I literally felt stripped bare, like my whole life was being tipped out around me as I took each step.

I'd spent my whole life careering from one pressurized situation to another, usually without much chance to breathe in between.

Team spirit spurs me on. I've always found it easier to be strong for other people than for myself.

[her first thoughts about Jedward] You two are TV gold.

Part of me will always love Ashley (Cole). I loved him so much I couldn't imagine a day when I would feel nothing for him. The difference now is there is so much water under the bridge I would drown if I ever went back to him. A whole year had passed since the divorce, but I had spiralled so deep into darkness afterwards it took me so long to come up into the light and see things clearly.

[reconciling with Simon Cowell] I didn't want to work with him anytime soon, but to be in touch again felt like a cloud had been blown away from my life.

[wanting to write her autobiography] The lies and the speculation had to stop. All that media scrutiny had nearly turned me crazy, and there was no way I was going back there again. I was in a happy place, and I was not going back into that darkness. I was ready to tell my story exactly how it is, straight from my heart.

Derek (Hough) is one of those people who makes the day more enjoyable.

[during her divorce from Ashley Cole] I'm not going to stay at home and wallow in all those horrible feelings and thoughts when I could be doing what I love and making music.

I never had bad vibes about marrying Ashley (Cole). I wish I was still married to him...if only things had turned out differently.