Pattie Boyd on her 1974 split from ‘hot-blooded boy’ George Harrison

‘I felt that I had to leave George because things were getting really out of hand,’ photographer said

Pattie Boyd has opened up about her relationships with George Harrison and his best friend Eric Clapton in a new interview.

Model-turned-photographer Boyd was married to Beatles star Harrison from 1966 to 1977, after having decided to leave him in 1974.

Weeks after their split she got together with Clapton, who had declared his undying love for her while she was with his friend. Clapton and Boyd were then married between 1979 and 1989.

Speaking to The Telegraph about leaving her marriage with Harrison (who had begun excessively using cocaine and having affairs), Boyd, 78, said: “It was an extremely difficult decision of mine to make.

“I felt that I had to leave George because things were getting really out of hand. George was just being a different George. We had gone in different directions, basically. But we still loved each other…”

She continued: “It’s just that I think he wanted to spread his wings and take advantage of being the handsome, famous, rich guy that he was, and see how the girls feel about him. A hot-blooded boy – why not, I suppose.”

Speaking about her split from Clapton, she said: “Well, I was no longer Mrs Famous George, or Mrs Famous Eric, so who am I? I am no one. No one knows me – I don’t even know me.

“I was at a critical point in my life, and so I saw a psychotherapist who was quite wonderful. She was amazing. She guided me out of this mire of despond and gradually I learned to believe in myself.”

Boyd moved away from rockers and later married property developer Rod Weston.

Her photography has been exhibited all over the world and she is also a bestselling author – she published her autobiography Wonderful Today in 2007.

Eric Clapton (AFP via Getty Images)

Boyd also has two podcasts: Lunch in Lockdown focussed on her recipes during the pandemic, and in Cocktails with Pattie she mixes drinks with starry pals.

Her new book, My Life in Pictures, is published by Reel Art Press on 25 October.