Give up the country life? You’ve got to be Kidding!
JEMMA KIDD may have split from her aristocratic husband – but she’s not giving up the trappings of country life so easily.
I hear the model has told friends she intends to stay close to the family home on the Duke of Wellington’s Hampshire estate, despite splitting from his son, Arthur Wellesley, the Earl of Mornington, after 15 years.
The Countess, 46, was never likely to return to Notting Hill where they previously lived. For despite the well- heeled neighbourhood being one of the most exclusive in London, when she lived there she complained about ‘rubbish on the pavement and people everywhere’ and once said: ‘I’m not bringing my kids up here!’
It now sounds like Jemma won’t be going far as I hear work is progressing on a new yoga retreat she plans to open at the estate.
I’m told Jemma is considering remaining with her twins, ten, and her four- year- old son within the grounds of Stratfield Saye House, although no firm decisions have been made. Any risk of awkward encounters with her in-laws is likely to be slight as the estate has 5,000 acres.
A close friend of the family tells me: ‘Arthur has been spending time in his pad in London since the split. But Jemma desires to stay on the estate with their children. Nothing concrete has been decided on their future plans yet though.’
The couple tied the knot in 2005 in
Barbados, where Jemma grew up. But, as I previously revealed, things soured to the point where they were barely speaking to each other during lockdown, so they decided to split.
In contrast to his wife, Lord Mornington, 42, has always embraced life in the capital. His family have apartments at Apsley House at Hyde Park Corner, facing the ceremonial arch dedicated to the first Duke of Wellington, topped with a statue of a horse-drawn chariot.
He has joked: ‘Sometimes at night, I go out and ride it.’