The Anatomy Of A Taylor Swift Dating Story

Here we are again, folks. Whether or not we’ve recovered from the three-month fury that was Hiddleswift, the Taylor Swift Romance Express is now leaving the station. And if you’re going to keep up, you need to know the classic phases to look out for when it comes to media coverage of a Taylor Swift relationship.

Yesterday, Phase One began. All over the tabloid landscape, anonymous sources whispered of a budding relationship between Swift and a mystery man, Joe Alwyn. Who’s Joe Alwyn, you ask? He’s a British actor, and the star of the 2015 Ang Lee film Billy Lynn's Halftime Walk. But right now, the priority is that he’s Taylor Swift’s new boyfriend. Like of her former beaus, it's a label that'll stay with him...forever.

What comes after Phase One? Here are the essential elements to media coverage of a Taylor Swift dating story, from photographic evidence to song lyric analysis.