The Britpop anthem we thought was a love song — but wasn’t
On the surface, Wonderwall is a sweet, melancholic love song — the kind of thing people propose to, cry to, or absolutely butcher at karaoke after six beers.
For years, the assumed backstory was that Noel Gallagher wrote it for his then-girlfriend (later wife) Meg Mathews.
It made sense. They were together when the song dropped in 1995, and the press ran wild. Noel didn’t correct the record. Why would he?
But here’s the thing: it wasn’t actually about her. Not then, not ever.
In later interviews, Noel admitted the Meg narrative was convenient — but false. “The meaning of that song was taken away from me by the media who jumped on it,” he told Mojo. “And how do you tell your missus it’s not about her once she’s read it is?”
Instead, he explained, Wonderwall was about something vaguer, sadder, and arguably more interesting: “an imaginary friend who’s gonna come and save you from yourself.” Not a romantic partner. Not a real person. Just a blurry, abstract idea of hope.
So, no — Meg Mathews didn’t inspire Wonderwall. And while she did walk out of Oasis’s 2025 reunion gig just before they played it, she later said it was just to beat the traffic. The song had already been mythologised for decades by then — and according to Noel, it was never about her in the first place.
They were still together during the Morning Glory sessions. The song came out in 1995. They married in 1997 and split in the early 2000s. Timeline-wise, the love song theory never really added up.
In the end, Wonderwall isn’t a love song. It’s about isolation, self-rescue, and maybe being a bit lost in your twenties. The fact that people still slow dance to it is just one of life’s great misreads.
So next time someone tells you it’s about “his girlfriend,” feel free to ruin the moment.
