Lord Lichfield ‘ seriously ill’ as he suffers stroke
Queen’s concern as her cousin collapses while staying with friends
LORD Lichfield was last night seriously ill in hospital after having a stroke.
The Queen’s cousin was staying with friends in the country when he collapsed yesterday morning.
His family were by his side at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford last night. A Buckingham Palace spokesman said the Queen, who is extremely fond of her cousin, was being kept abreast of his condition.
‘The Queen is obviously concerned at the news and is being kept informed of how Lord Lichfield is doing,’ she said.
Although strokes do not necessarily prove fatal, a spokesman for the earl admitted that he was seriously ill. ‘Lord Lichfield was staying with friends in Oxfordshire and was well until this morning when he developed a sudden illness,’ she said.
‘He has been diagnosed as having had a stroke and is currently admitted to the stroke unit where he is being cared for.’
News of Lord Lichfield’s collapse has come as a shock to family and friends.
‘ He has always been the very picture of health and was working in his studio in London on Wednesday,’ said one. ‘He doesn’t drink and gave up cigarettes several years ago, but has always been something of a workaholic.’
The 66-year- old Harrow- educated aristocrat is one of Britain’s bestknown photographers, as adept at capturing the beauty of a Vogue model as he is working on a portrait for the Royal Family.
One of his most famous images was the naked pose of Sixties singer Marsha Hunt, complete with a giant afro, for the hippy musical Hair. Others he has photographed during his 40-year career include Joanna Lumley, Jean Shrimpton, Oliver Reed and Michael Caine as well as Sir Mick Jagger and his ex-wife Bianca – whose wedding day portrait has since become an iconic image.
Other brides who have relied on Lord Lichfield’s expertise have included his great friend Princess Margaret and the late Princess of Wales.
Born Thomas Patrick John Anson in April 1939, Lichfield still lives at Shugborough, the family’s Staffordshire estate although he shocked his parents by leaving the army to pursue his passion for photography and asking to be called plain Patrick. In 1975 he married Lady Leonora Grosvenor, sister of the Duke of Westminster, one of Britain’s richest men, but the couple divorced after 11 years. The couple have a son, Tom, and two daughters, Rose and Eloise, a successful model and well-known socialite who is dating the former boyfriend of actress Sadie Frost.
Although he has never re-married, Lord Lichfield is currently in a longterm relationship with Lady Annunziata Asquith.
Two years ago a major retrospective of his work was held at the National Portrait Gallery.
Lord Lichfield has also been awarded fellowships of both the British Institute of Professional Photography and the Royal Photographic Society.
r.english@dailymail.co.uk