From Moss to Lady Mary, rise of the celebrity cougar
BY DATING a man nine years her junior, Sienna Miller could easily be dubbed a cougar, the jokey name for women who pursue younger men.
And she’s not the only one, with plenty of British female celebrities hooking up with toyboys, in a reversal of the age-old cliche of middle-aged men seeking younger partners.
The stars include supermodel Kate Moss, 46, who has been in a three-year relationship with Count Nikolai von Bismarck, who is 13 years her junior.
Michelle Dockery, who played Lady Mary in Downton Abbey, is a recent convert to the cougar club, with The Mail on Sunday revealing last October that the 38-year-old is dating talent agent Jasper Waller-Bridge, the 31-year-old brother of Fleabag creator Phoebe.
Helena Bonham Carter, 53, is 21 years older than her beau Rye Dag Holmboe, while Kelly Brook, 41, is dating Italian model Jeremy Parisi, who is seven years her junior. They have been together since 2014 and are rumoured to be engaged, although they have never confirmed it.
Former EastEnders actress Tamzin Outhwaite, 49, has made no secret about the joys of being with her toyboy.
Defending her romance with Tom Child, 28, she said recently: ‘People think I’m having a midlife crisis, but actually not all men want a younger woman.’ She was previously married to actor Tom Ellis, 41.
Actress Tilda Swinton, 59, who lives in Nairn, has been in a relationship with German artist Sandro Kopp, 41, for 16 years following her split from playwright and artist John Byrne, 80. And 41-year-old singer Nicole Scherzinger is dating 34-yearold former Scottish rugby star Thom Evans, whom she met on Celebrity X Factor.