Shania Twain steps out with new beau
Country singer Shania Twain has a new guy -- and she didn't have to go far from her Swiss château home to find him.
The country singer, who largely disappeared from the public eye in the last year after her marriage to record producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange fell apart, has been stepping out with tall, curly-haired Frédéric Thiébaud, described in the tabloid press as a 39-year-old triathlete and manager for Nestlé.
He's gorgeous, and the pair have a lot in common. Both of their marriages broke up after their spouses reportedly had affairs -- with each other.
Here's the spouse-swapping trail: Frédéric Thiébaud was married to Marie-Anne Thiébaud, Twain's friend and a secretary and manager of the couple's Swiss château. Marie-Anne was widely identified as the "other woman" who had a relationship with Mutt Lange, although the pair have denied having an affair.
Twain and Lange's 14-year marriage broke up just over a year ago, and they separated. That ended a highly lucrative partnership in which Lange produced the superstar's three blockbuster albums.
Now, Twain has hooked up with Frédéric.
In a letter posted recently on her website, Twain said she has made a point of surrounding herself with loving people whom she could trust.
"A dear friend and true gentleman by the name of Fred, has been the most constant companion of support for both Eja (her son) and me, and having gone through the suffering of his family splitting apart at the same time under the same extreme circumstances, he understood me better than anyone. We leaned on one another through the ups and downs, taking turns holding each other up. We've become stronger and closer through it all, as have our children Eja and Johanna (Fred's eight-year-old daughter).
In the letter, Twain said she has spent the last six months travelling, and working hard to "move on."
A video posted on the website documents her travels with "Fred" and their kids. (Shaniatwain.com; the video is up until Labour Day.)
"I'm 'Okay,' " Twain writes on the website. "Yes, I hit a very big bump in the road, but Eja and I are doing well and with all the concern you, my fans, have shown over this difficult period, I want you to see for yourself that we are doing fine, by sharing these personal images with you."
She certainly looks happy in the video. Most of the video and photos were shot by Fred on his cellphone. Twain is shown skydiving and skiing; with the kids, riding camels in the Sinai desert; touring Lebanon; swimming with dolphins and riding a horse on a beach near the Red Sea. Her Christmas present from Fred, the video says, was a surprise trip in a Piper plane over the Swiss Alps for a picnic on a glacier. He went ahead and painted a big red heart and the word "love" in the snow.
Twain is set to appear as a guest judge on television singing contest American Idol during auditions this week. She made no mention of when she would be out with some new music.
