James Corden has revealed how he "definitely wanted more" than just a friendship with Lily Allen and in his autobiography he opens up about how he thought she did too.
The pair became friends after Lily Cooper (nee Allen) asked for his number at the premiere of The History Boys six years ago.
"We got talking at the party after the film and she asked me for my phone number, which was a bit embarrassing as I was standing with my girlfriend at the time," he wrote.
After the pair met, the Gavin & Stacey star reveals that he was approached to go on her chatshow to promote the new series. "When I spoke to the researcher beforehand he said the idea for the show was to find out how compatible Lily and I would be," he recalled.
Admitting that he had quite a big head because of all the success of the show, Corden continued: "Given where I was at the time, with my ego starting to spiral out of control, a broken heart trying to nurse itself with empty one-night stands and a complete lack of understanding of my position in the world, this was right up my street. I made it my aim to make Lily mine."
The couple went out for a while, but the comedian admits it was never a "proper date".
"It always seemed to involve other people and not just the two of us. I guess we were friends but, for my part, I definitely wanted more than that. The last time I went to her place was when the reality dawned on me," he said.
"It was Lily, me and a couple of her friends chatting and drinking. Eventually, Lily let out a yawn, looked at me and said, 'I'm going to bed now, what about you?' My heart stopped. This was it. After all this time, all the false dawns. So she walked up the stairs with me padding behind, my mouth dry, my stomach churning, my hands sweating - I was all kinds of sexy. Play it cool, I told myself. She is just a girl, just a girl."
But after heading up for a night of action, the real situation didn't end up the way he thought it might.
"At the landing there was a bedroom on our right and Lily pushed open the door. My heart was pounding. Lily looked deep into my eyes. 'You can sleep in there', she said, pointing to the room opposite, then pecked me on the cheek. 'Night, night'," he recalled.
"Never have I felt such a douchebag. Who was I trying to kid? I remember lying in bed and realising how badly I'd misread the signs. There was no me and Lily, it was all in my mind.
"I'm glad that's all it was. I like Lily very much and know if push came to shove that night, I'd have been awful in bed. I would've been so nervous that nothing - and I do mean nothing - would've happened. So I want to thank Lily for sparing a lovesick fool that kind of embarrassment."
Corden's autobiography, May I Have Your Attention, Please?, is set for release on September 29.
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