Is Taylor Swift’s Midnights about Joe Alwyn? Relationship timeline as ‘Anti-hero’ singer returns to Eras tour

Taylor Swift is set to return to the stage tonight as her record-breaking Era’s Tour arrives in Tampa, Florida. All eyes will be on which surprise song Swift will play tonight amid rumours of a split from Joe Alwyn.

This will be the first time Swift has performed since news broke of the couple’s split over the weekend. Throughout the Era’s tour, Swift has delivered a three hour show that includes 44 of her best songs, two of which are surprise songs that change at every show.

Swift is famous for delivering secret messages to fans through her music, clothes, jewellery and more. For example, the singer all but confirmed Speak Now is her next re-recorded album to drop in her music video for Bejeweled.

She has even acknowledged the insane amount of Easter eggs she leaves for fans. Speaking on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon last November,  the singer-songwriter explained how there are a ‘psychotic amount’ of Easter eggs in her music video for Bejeweled. She said: “We have a PDF file for the Easter eggs in this video because there are so many that we could not keep track.”

So, when Taylor was seen for the first time since news broke of her split you can bet your bottom dollar fans went wild searching for Easter eggs on her outfit. Most notably, fans were quick to notice Swift had ditched the necklace with ‘J’ for on Joe on which she references in her song ‘Call it What You Want’, a song about Joe Alwyn.

As news continues to break surrounding her split from Alwyn after six years, many people are wondering whether the couple actually split months ago and that her most recent album ‘Midnights’ is actually about their break-up.

Fans have gone back through the album and noted a number of songs seem to be reminiscing on a relationship, or addressing a break-up. Of course, the likes of Lavender Haze had fans believing the two were still very much together and The Great War offers a hopeful look at overcoming obstacles in relationships.

Additionally, at every Era’s show on the tour the house that features heavily in the visuals for her album ‘Lover’ gets burned down. The album is mostly about her relationship with Joe Alwyn with songs like London Boy and Cornelia Street.

It’s unlikely that the couple will comment on the break-up as they have been famously private about their relationship over the years. So, are all the rumours true? Here’s a full breakdown of their relationship timeline including the last time they were seen together.

Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn relationship timeline

May 2016: Taylor and Joe attend the Met Gala

It’s entirely possible that this was the first night the couple met at this event. Taylor may have even referenced the event in her song “Dress” from her comeback album Reputation (2017). In the song she references her bleached bob and Joe’s buzzcut saying “flashback when you met me, your buzzcut and my hair bleached”.

October 2016: Taylor and Joe reportedly start dating

According to Taylor’s diaries, the pair began dating in late 2016 but kept things as private as possible. Taylor had split from Tom Hiddleston in September 2016, leading to the release of songs Getaway Car and Midnight Rain.