He’s the exotically named aristocrat who’s picked up two BAFTAS, has twice been nominated for an Oscar – and this week, in inevitably sad circumstances, inherited a title, which, unusually, can pass down the female line, making him top dog in a family which enjoys a £3.5billion fortune, stemming from ownership of 95 acres of central London, including Harley Street.
In the process, Peter Czernin, who has just succeeded as the 11th Lord Howard de Walden, following the death last weekend, aged 88, of his mother, Hazel, becomes arguably the most eligible man in the country.
Although 58, and with a son and a daughter now in their mid-twenties, Czernin – who owes his surname, pronounced Cher-neen, to his late father, a nobleman of Czech heritage – is not only the producer of hit films like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and The Banishees of Inisherin, and of acclaimed television series like A Very British Scandal…he’s also – currently – unmarried.
Three years ago, it looked as though he’d be snapped up by voluptuous Star Trek beauty Alice Eve, 42. Their lockdown romance continued into the summer of 2021, when Alice posted a photo of herself with Pete, as Czernin’s known to friends, on social media.
Czernin’s divorce from his wife Lucinda, whom he married in 1994, had been finalised a few months earlier.
Peter Czernin (pictured) has just succeeded as the 11th Lord Howard de Walden, following the death of his mother, Hazel
During their lockdown romance, actress Alice Eve (right) posted this photo of herself with Peter Czernin (left) on social media – but it was subsequently deleted
Alice Eve (pictured) stars as Carol Marcus in Star Trek Into Darkness
But the image was subsequently deleted and, by the end of the year, Alice, divorced in 2017 after a three-year marriage to financier Alex Cowper-Smith, had parted from Czernin. At the time, one of her friends explained that, while Alice was eager for children, Pete lacked an appetite for more.
Since then, Czernin’s romantic life has remained under the radar. Though exceptionally well-connected – his closest friends include former prime minister Lord (David) Cameron, a chum since their days at Eton – he has always been determined to define himself by his own accomplishments, not his privileged starting-point in life.
‘He’s bright and he’s worked very hard, unlike other trustafarians,’ an old friend tells me, pointing out that Czernin began his career by taking whatever dogsbody work he could find, including manning the photocopier.
He should make a documentary series about ‘near misses’ in history. It could include the incident in Munich in 1931 when his great-grandfather, at the wheel of a Fiat, knocked down a man with a toothbrush moustache. Alas, Adolf Hitler got to his feet – unscathed.
The BBC needs to send presenters on a history course.
Martha Kearney told listeners of Radio 4’s Today programme yesterday: ‘In the splendid setting of Blenheim Palace, ancestral home of the Duke of Wellington, Sir Keir Starmer will try to reset the UK’s relationship with Europe and pave the way for a new deal on migrants.’
Martha Kearney (pictured) hosts the Today Programme on BBC Radio 4
She added, jokingly: ‘Presumably, he won’t be mentioning Waterloo as he tries to woo French president Emmanuel Macron.’
In fact, the Oxfordshire stately home is the ancestral seat of the Duke of Marlborough, who defeated the French at Blenheim 111 years before Wellington did the same at Waterloo.
Daisy’s a good egg… she just loves chickens
What’s with Daisy Edgar-Jones’s fascination with poultry?
The actress, who starred in the BBC drama Normal People, once hit the headlines when she wore a pair of £1,200 white shoes that were made to look as if the heel was piercing through an eggshell and causing the yolk to spill out.
Now, she has posed with the birds on a visit to Spitalfields City Farm in London.
Daisy Edgar Jones poses with chickens at Spitalfields City Farm in London
A pair of £1,200 shoes worn my Edgar Jones that were made to look as if the heel was piercing through an eggshell and causing the yolk to spill out
‘I really love chickens,’ she says. ‘I love that their little legs are so thin and their bodies so big.
‘I think they’re the most comical animal. You can move them around and their heads stay straight.’
New Creative Industries minister Sir Chris Bryant is enjoying the perks of office.
‘I was offered VIP tickets to see Kylie [Minogue] in Hyde Park last week,’ he says at the UK Music Summer Party.
Did he accept? ‘I’m a gay man — you think I didn’t already have VIP tickets to see Kylie?’
Minister for Creative Industries Chris Bryant (pictured in February this year) says he already had VIP tickets to watch Kylie Minogue take to the stage in London
Kylie Minogue performs at the UK Music Summer Party in Hyde Park last weekend
Bryant also enjoyed a trip to Cologne to see Depeche Mode.
‘They just can’t get enough of our music in Germany,’ enthuses the former vicar, who no doubt bopped to the band’s hit Personal Jesus.
Richard Madeley’s summer holiday in France with his wife, Judy Finnigan, was an expensive disaster.
The Good Morning Britain presenter has revealed that he damaged his hire car so badly while motoring on the wrong side of the road that the cost of repair was higher than replacing the vehicle.
Richard Madeley (right) drove a hire car on the wrong side of the road while on holiday in France with his wife Judy Finnigan (left)
‘I spent a month in France and had a French car while I was out there and I ended up driving on the left side of the road,’ he tells me.
‘I totally wrote off the car. Luckily, neither of us were hurt.
Some actors claim they accept roles because they have an affinity with the character.
Others are more honest, such as Sir Anthony Hopkins, who stars in Prime Video’s new swords-and-sandals drama.
‘My agent phoned me and said, “I’m sending you a script called Those About To Die,”‘ says Sir Anthony.
Sir Anthony Hopkins (pictured) plays Vespasian in Prime Video’s Those About To Die
‘I said, “Oh, good. It’s obviously, something about the Roman Empire.”… I didn’t read all ten episodes but, you know, my answers are very simple and direct.
‘I said, “I’ll do this. How much are they going to pay me?”‘
All eyes on the spies
I spied a real-life spy at a discreet gathering in London’s St James’s this week to celebrate 60 years of Aston Martin’s links with James Bond.
Sir Richard Moore, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, slipped in unannounced to the private champagne reception in the Burlington Arcade.
The fizz served was Bollinger, not the Taittinger 007 drank in Ian Fleming’s novels. The party’s centrepiece was Bond’s Aston Martin DB5, which made its debut in Goldfinger.
Usually operating under the radar, MI6 boss Moore made headlines in March when it was reported that he had resigned from the Garrick Club amid controversy over its then refusal to accept women as members.