At their peak, the Vestey family enjoyed almost unrivalled riches, courtesy – in part – of ownership of the Dewhurst butchers chain which, till the 1990s, was a fixture in pretty well every High Street across the land.
This immense fortune – created by two hard-knuckled brothers from Liverpool, William and Edmund, and currently estimated at about £750 million – enabled the Vesteys to acquire country seats in Gloucestershire and Suffolk, and sporting estates in Scotland, not to mention strings of polo ponies and a peerage.
But it hasn’t insulated the family from marital misfortune, with Flora Vestey notching up two divorces before her 40th birthday.
She’s the second daughter of the late Lord Vestey – affectionately known as ‘Spam’, a great friend of Queen Elizabeth, for whom he served as Master of The Horse.
Now, I can disclose, it’s the turn of her cousin Robin, 56, joint Master of the Thurlow Hunt in Suffolk, who has unhitched from his wife, Victoria, who turns 58 this month.
Friends of the couple, who married in 1993 after meeting at university in Edinburgh, are stunned.
Flora Vestey (pictured) has already notched up two divorces before her 40th birthday
Robin Vestey, 56 (pictured), joint Master of the Thurlow Hunt in Suffolk, has divorced from his wife, Victoria, who turns 58 this month
‘They’re both lovely people,’ a chum tells me, explaining that, though divertingly different in style, they appeared to complement each other in a very amicable way.
Victoria – known as Vic – came ‘from a somewhat different background’ from Old Etonian Robin, reflects the chum.
‘She’s very slender and attractive but doesn’t suffer fools gladly, loves the hunt staff and the terrier men.’ She can also, he adds, be splendidly forthright when out hunting, which can be too much for some female riders.
‘They don’t like being b******ed by her,’ reflects this sportsman, adding that Robin, by contrast, is ‘a mild-mannered, really benevolent’ character – which explains why, as well as being a non-executive director of Vestey Holdings, he has, since 2020, also been chairman of what’s known as the family council.
Ever discreet, he declines to comment on his rupture from Vic, with whom he has three adult children, Georgina, 30, Rose, 29, and Harry, 27. Vic is similarly circumspect, limiting herself to telling me: ‘I can confirm that Robin and I have separated.’
Aside from the emotional toll of the break-up, there is plenty at stake. Whereas the late Lord Vestey’s side of the family own Stowell Park in Gloucestershire and 5,500 surrounding acres, Robin and his three brothers lord it over 15,500 acres at Thurlow, plus a couple of estates in Scotland.
The young royal who’s really smart about art
The Duke of Kent’s granddaughter Lady Amelia Windsor was once named the ‘most beautiful royal’ by Tatler magazine, but another young member of the family can claim to be the brainiest.
Art consultant Flora Vesterberg, granddaughter of Princess Alexandra, Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin, will be able to call herself Dr Vesterberg if she completes her post-graduate studies.
Flora Vesterberg, granddaughter of Princess Alexandra, Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin, will become Dr Vesterberg if she completes a PhD programme at The Courtauld Institute of Art
‘I’ve been accepted into the PhD programme of The Courtauld Institute of Art,’ says Flora, 30, who has lectured at auction houses.
‘It has been a long-held dream and I’m very grateful to be beginning my research into Nordic Impressionism.’
The smart set’s talking about… Lady Rachel’s travails in the ‘omnisexual’ dating scene
After a ‘horrendous’ divorce from company director Andrew Cameron-Webb, his ex-wife, Lady Rachel, has dipped her toe into the dating scene, with results that have shocked (and entertained) her friends.
‘I signed up to a few apps,’ explains the Earl of Aylesford’s daughter. ‘It’s a whole new world out there. One had the most extraordinary amount of ‘pronouns’ and ‘gender’ options. No wonder the young are so confused. Does anyone even know what ‘omnisexual’ or ‘skoliosexual’ means?
Lady Rachel Cameron (pictured) has dipped her toe into the dating scene, but admits to not being impressed by potential matches so far
‘I’m pretty unimpressed so far. Most of the men ‘matched’ are either showing off their pecs or beer bellies.’
Lady Rachel, 50, a fashion designer known for her jumpsuits, adds: ‘I do know lots of people who have met the love of their lives online, so I guess I will have to persevere.’
You need a cosy little M&S vest Alexa, or you’ll catch a chill
She was once Marks & Spencer’s ‘It-girl’, but Alexa Chung wore an outfit this week that you’re unlikely to find in the High Street giant’s stores.
The television presenter, 41, attended the Miu Miu Women’s Tales screening, at Langan’s Brasserie in Mayfair, wearing a racy cream cut-out bodysuit, blue PVC skirt and a classic trench, all designed by the Italian fashion house.
Alexa Chung wearing a Miu Miu racy cream cut-out bodysuit, blue PVC skirt and a classic trench at an event by the fashion house in Mayfair
‘I really liked the outfit I wore and was especially pleased to get to showcase my undervalued underboob,’ says Alexa, who is going out with The Sandman actor Tom Sturridge, 39. He was previously engaged to Hollywood star Sienna Miller.
Is Ethan and Uma’s girl too mouthy for Hollywood?
As the daughter of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke, she might have expected to be treated like Hollywood royalty when she became an actress herself.
But Maya Hawke has revealed that she has been on the receiving end of scathing remarks about her appearance while on a film set.
‘A director told me that I looked prettier with my mouth closed and that I should close my mouth after I speak more often,’ the Little Women star discloses.
‘If you watch any of my performances, you’ll realise I am a mouth breather and I do often let my mouth hang open depending on what character I’m playing, because jaw tension and mouth tension is so important to express what kind of person you are, and where you leave that is very important.’
Maya Hawke (pictured) has revealed that she has been on the receiving end of scathing remarks about her appearance while on a film set
Maya, 26, does not name the person who made the comment, but says she was left ‘really upset’.
She explains: ‘I was playing a character that is distinctly unself-conscious, and that was a trait of the character and they didn’t care about looking pretty.’
‘Sachsgate’ victim is a new romantic
Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs’s granddaughter Georgina Baillie, who was publicly humiliated by comedian Russell Brand, has found love with a pop star 28 years her senior.
Artist Georgina, 39, is going out with Rusty Egan, 67, (pictured with her) who founded New Romantic band Visage with Midge Ure. ‘We met through a friend,’ she tells me.
Egan, who is best known for the Visage hit Fade To Grey, has a daughter with his first wife, Miranda, and three sons with his late second wife, Penelope.
Georgina Baillie, the granddaughter of the late actor and Fawlty Towers star Andrew Sachs, is going out with Rusty Eganimages (pictured, left)
Georgina celebrates five years sober tomorrow. Brand paid for her rehab after ‘Sachsgate’, the scandal exposed by The Mail on Sunday in which the comic and Jonathan Ross taunted Sachs about Georgina’s relationshsip with Brand by leaving revolting messages on his answerphone. They were played on Brand’s BBC radio show in 2008.
‘Everyone I’d met who was also sober was wrong for me,’ Georgina says. ‘Rusty helped me do things I never thought I could without using or drinking, like going to gigs.’
Hockey hooligans give club the blues
Claims that today’s students are better behaved than their hedonistic predecessors appear to be exaggerated.
I hear that rowdy Cambridge undergraduates have been fined for running amok in an Indian restaurant.
Members of Cambridge University’s Hockey Club are believed to have broken plates and glasses and thrown food about.
Those involved have been fined £300 to cover the damages.
In a message in the club’s group chat, a member criticised the team, stating the incident could ‘have been very bad for our reputation, this could have escalated into criminal damages’.
Royal recycler’s on trend
King Charles waters his plants with his bathwater and had his old bathroom curtains transformed into new furnishings for his Highgrove estate. Now, milk cartons from the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk are being turned into trendy outfits by design duo Vin + Omi.
‘We have been doing lots of work with the King about taking plants from Sandringham and making something new,’ Vin tells me. ‘This season, we’re doing milk cartons – which is weird.’
Milk cartons from the King’s Sandringham Estate are being turned into trendy outfits. Pictured: The King at an offshore turbine base factory in Middlesborough
The outfits will be seen as part of their latest collection, entitled KAOS, at London Fashion Week next week.
His Majesty is yet to make an appearance at London Fashion Week. ‘We’ve invited him to the fashion shows, but he always laughs,’ Vin says. ‘But we think he will come one day.’
Opened with great fanfare by boxing champion Anthony Joshua in 2017, and used by stars including ‘Sporty Spice’ Mel C and former Vogue editor Edward Enninful, fashionable gym BXR London has left some members in the cold.
‘BXR often has no water in its showers – it’s gone on for years,’ one furious member tells me. ‘They haven’t dealt with the problem at all and haven’t compensated members financially. I pay £265 per month for this.’
BXR admits there were hot water outages in January due to ‘peak seasonal shower usage’ and external works. However, a spokesman assures me: ‘If it was a common issue, we’d be losing members – but we are thriving.’
Here in Britain promoting his debut in the Captain America movie franchise – he plays a US President who turns into the terrifying Hulk – Hollywood veteran Harrison Ford is asked what turns him into ‘Hulk mode’.
Married to third wife and Ally McBeal star Calista Flockhart since 2010, the 82-year-old Indiana Jones star cheekily responds: ‘Usually my wife.’ Surely not!
Abba pictured in London. The band has successfully blocked an attempt by a Spanish wine company to register ‘Vina Abba’ as a European trademark
These days they send hologram avatars to perform on stage on their behalf. But never assume that supergroup Abba, now all well into their 70s, are shuffling around in slippers, sipping aquavit, oblivious of the outside world.
They have, I can disclose, quashed an attempt by a Spanish wine company to register ‘Vina Abba’ as a European trademark, successfully arguing the Spaniards would be taking unfair advantage of the Abba brand by ‘misappropriating its selling power’.
All together now: ‘Money, money, money/Must be funny/In the rich man’s world…’
