Peter Andre has said that he empathises with Cheryl Cole and understand the kind of year she had in 2008.

Writing in New magazine, he explained: “It’s funny because I remember Cheryl Cole saying last year that she’d had the best and worst year of her life, what with Ashley allegedly cheating on her and her huge success on The X Factor, and I feel a bit like that at the moment.

“These past few months have been horrific on a personal level but on a professional level I’ve honestly never been happier. I think personal heartbreak spurs you on to do well because you need to focus on other things.”