Jilted lovers make great fodder in the all-consuming world of tabloid gossip media, often with big bucks paid for the exclusive "tell all" when cupid's arrow delivers a poisonous barb, such as the one Woman's Day shared with the world about football star turned television personality Beau Ryan last week.

And while the offer of the rumoured $20,000 cheque paid to the "heartbroken" Warren Riley to spill the beans might appear lucrative from the outside, the ultimate price being paid is far greater as Riley's former fiancee and television personality Lauren Brant and her alleged lover, married father of one and sports star Ryan, have quickly discovered.

What started as a titillating cover story on Woman's Day soon turned into a fully fledged media tsunami as Riley made claims that his fiancee and former Hi-5 children's entertainer, Brant, became romantically involved during their time together in the July pantomime production of Aladdin and His Wondrous Lamp.

Indeed, the genie had well and truly been let out.