David Hockney, hailed as Britain’s greatest living artist, was left devastated by the death of his young studio assistant, Dominic Elliott, ten years ago.
So much so that Hockney declared he would sell his five-bedroom home in Bridlington, on the Yorkshire coast, where Dominic drank a cocktail of illegal drugs and alcohol with Hockney’s ex-partner before drinking toilet cleaner, which led to his dead at the age of 23.
After selling the house in 2015, Hockney lived mainly in Los Angeles and then in France.
Now, however, the Yorkshireman appears to have finally come home, at the age of 87.
It looks like Hockney has finally come home at the age of 87 (pictured in 2017, in Paris)
A work by David Hockney, California (1965), valued at approximately £16,000,000, March 2024
A woman looks at works of art by David Hockney, at Phillips in London, during the unveiling of the highlights of the David Hockney auction, September 14, 2023
I can reveal that the painter has quietly updated his details at Companies House to reflect that he is now a resident of Britain. The document for David Hockney UK Ltd was filed last week.
Hockney previously updated his residence to France in 2021 after moving to a 17th century house in Normandy. He claimed the reason for his move was because he wanted the freedom to smoke in restaurants and because “the French know how to live.”
In 2022, he unveiled a 90-metre high frieze of the Normandy countryside, painted with his iPad – a style that has become synonymous with him.
Previously, the US was mentioned as his place of residence. He lived in Los Angeles for more than forty years and memorably described America as his “promised land.” California inspired his recurring paintings of swimming pools.
Despite stating that the US and France are ideal environments for an artist, much of Hockney’s work is inspired by Britain, including his Yorkshire landscapes and the celebrated series,
The arrival of spring in Woldgate, East Yorkshire in 2011 (twenty-eleven).
After graduating from the Royal College of Art in London in 1962, Hockney briefly owned a flat in Notting Hill, where he stayed until 1973 when he returned home.
Hockney’s only significant period of time living in Britain was between 2003 and 2013, when he converted his house in Bridlington, a former bed and breakfast, into an art studio.
Liz’s son is reunited with ‘daddy’ for Diwali
Elizabeth Hurley spoke about her sadness at not being able to have a baby with her ex-husband, Arun Nayar.
But her son, Damian Hurley, 22, whose father is the late American film producer Steve Bing, has regarded Indian textile heir Arun as a father figure for most of his life.
And the three were reunited this week at a Diwali dinner for the Royal Drawing School and India’s International Institute of Fine Arts at BAFTA Piccadilly.
“Arun is Damian’s father, and a very good one,” Liz has said. “They see each other a lot.”
She and Arun divorced in 2011 and he married model Kim Johnson, but they split in 2017.
Arun Nayar, Elizabeth Hurley and Damian Hurley attend a Diwali dinner for the Royal Drawing School & International Institute of Fine Arts at BAFTA Piccadilly on October 16
Elizabeth Hurley (pictured) spoke about her sadness at not being able to have a baby with her ex-husband, Arun Nayar (out of shot)
Few have lived as fast-paced a life as Nigel “The Rat” Pollitzer, the small-time playboy who, it was said, “had a different wife every weekend.”
But almost eight months after his death, at the age of 82, I can reveal that he was prepared to marry for a fourth time, and that he had explained that his will – just published – was ‘made in consideration of my marriage with Donna Gardner’.
“We were together for 30 years,” Donna tells me, delivering news that may surprise Louise Westlake, Pollitzer’s third ex-wife, whom he married in 1996.
He and Donna – the main beneficiary of his £554,000 estate – shared a sprawling country house in Sussex, owned by a trust controlled by Pollitzer’s adoptive family.
Arty Flora is a gem for jeweler Tiffany
The Princess of Wales has been spotted wearing Tiffany bracelets and earrings, but another member of the royal family has gone one step further and landed a job at the American jeweller.
Art advisor Flora Vesterberg, 29, granddaughter of Princess Alexandra, says: ‘There is a natural intersection between art and jewelery and I am very grateful to be able to explore that further.’
She has already curated a Tiffany & Co exhibition, Windows of Wonder, which is on display at Selfridges on Oxford Street in London.
Flora Vesterberg, the granddaughter of Princess Alexandra, gets a new job for the jewelry store Tiffany
It is unlikely that Dame Maggie Smith, who died last month aged 89, considered Mother Superior in Sister Act her best role.
Yet filmmaker Barry Sonnenfeld, best known for the Men In Black films, has recalled in his memoir that producer Scott Rudin threatened to abandon Sister Act if he could not secure her.
“Scott… drove up in his BMW 740i, the windows were open, he shouted over the car’s speaker and made the valet parker stand there… “It’s simple,” Rudin shouted.
“I have Maggie Smith or I’m closing the movie.”
British actress Maggie Smith poses as she arrives for the 201 BAFTA Awards
Beck’s team adheres to his fashion rules
He was known for his fashion sense during his time on the pitch, but David Beckham doesn’t allow his footballers to showcase their own style credentials.
The former England captain, who is now co-owner of Inter Miami CF, has put an end to the online trend of his players posing in their latest outfits before a match.
“Our team started doing it a few times and I stopped, but at that point we weren’t winning games,” he tells his former Manchester United teammate on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.
“They can still do it, I just don’t want to see it on social media if we actually lose games.”