They met when she interviewed 23-year-old Peter for the CBBC edition of Fame Academy. But when their romance became public, he confessed to smoking crack cocaine with glamour models after a football match. BY association, his revelations threatened Fearne's career as a squeaky-clean kids' TV presenter, just as it was really taking off. "It was at the beginning of the relationship and we didn't talk about it much - we swept it under the carpet," says Fearne, speaking for the first time of the ruinous romance she is relieved to have left behind. "I've never had anything to do with drugs and it was never anything to do with me, but he wasn't proud of it and was embarrassed that I was caught up in it." When she was pictured leaving a nightclub with Brame - looking like a bleary-eyed rock chick who'd been knocking back tequilas - her BBC bosses weren't amused. Anybody who knows me will say that I am incredibly driven, dedicated and disciplined in what I do. "They realised that I might be going out with Peter, but I'm sensible and very much my own person." Even so, after much soul-searching, Fearne decided to cut Brame out of her life - for good. She says they "grew apart" and "weren't on the same page of the book", but the bad publicity surrounding their romance didn't help. And neither did his erratic behaviour. When they were out together, he would often become edgy and possessive if she chatted to other men. He would also square up to photographers and bouncers, and earned a reputation as a third-rate Liam Gallagher. Peter's hedonistic lifestyle constantly clashed with Fearne's single-minded approach to her career. After nine months, things finally came to a head. "Peter was a real rock 'n' roll party boy, but he took it to another level," says Fearne. "He loved going out and hanging out with friends, which made it difficult for us to get along. I'd be getting up really early to go to work and he'd just be coming in after a night on the town. We never got to see each other. "It all got a bit intense and we thought it would be better to call it quits."