EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: TV chef Gizzi Erskine’s ‘brutal’ debt as house sale falls through

Her father, the late 2nd Baron Erskine of Rerrick, was declared bankrupt after a business venture failed, and now TV chef Gizzi Erskine has been left ‘broken’ by her own financial disaster.

Gizzi, 44, is upset after the potential buyer of her London home pulled out of the deal at the last minute.

She hoped the sale would pay off her enormous debts.

“It was brutal,” she admits. “The buyer backed out three days before I was supposed to move, after the exchange had been delayed for four to five weeks and a moving date had been set.

‘The house was for sale for a whole year and was ‘sold’ in March.’

The two-bedroom converted warehouse in Hackney, east London, has been on the market for bids of more than £900,000.

She says, “I spent so much money I didn’t have, trying to reach the finish line as a result of the worst business decision I’ve ever made.”

She has invested in a series of failed businesses, the most recent being the Love Cafe in Margate, Kent, which she ran with former Libertines singer Carl Barat.

Gizzi is desperate to pay off her debts after investing in a series of failed businesses, the most recent of which is the Love Cafe in Margate, Kent, which she ran with former Libertines singer Carl Barat.

The author of books such as Cook Yourself Thin had planned to divide her time between a spot in south London and Brighton, home to her rock boyfriend Matthew Turner, lead singer of the punk band Luxury Apartments.

“I have worked so hard to remove all the chaos from my life,” she says, adding of her planned home sale: “I have worked so hard to heal myself and this was my point of complete exit. It has been my impending salvation.

‘It was only three days until I could pay off my debts; only three days until I could have financial freedom; only three days until I no longer had to live hand to mouth for the first time in almost three years.

“I’m really devastated.”

Dua’s mansion expansion goes awry

Dua Lipa was warned to be wary of unexploded Luftwaffe bombs during building work on her £6.75million home.

The 28-year-old singer of Levitating had to spend money on a study that revealed that bombs had fallen near her home during World War II.

Its architects discovered that several streets around the North London mansion had been hit by Hitler’s planes during the Blitz.

And after receiving the UXO (unexploded ordnance) report, her team was given the green light to move forward with building an extension to the property, complete with an underground swimming pool and home studio.

Potentially explosive: Dua Lipa was warned to watch out for unexploded Luftwaffe bombs during building work on her £6.75million home

Pure family fun for Amanda

Amanda Abbington’s life sometimes seems more incident-ridden than a soap opera, so it must be a relief for her to return to the gentle drama of the stage – and the love of her family.

At the premiere of When It Happens To You, a new play at the Park Theatre in north London, she was joined by Joe, 18, and Grace, 16, her children with ex-boyfriend and former Sherlock co-star Martin Freeman.

Also there to support her was her fiancé, Jonathan Goodwin, 41, whose career as an escape expert ended in an accident that nearly cost him his life just five weeks into their engagement, when he suffered a ruptured spinal cord.

The 50-year-old actress is awaiting the outcome of a BBC investigation into her claims that her Strictly Come Dancing partner Giovanni Pernice was “abusive, cruel and mean” – which he denies.

(Left to right) Grace Freeman, Amanda Abbington, Joe Freeman and Jonathan Goodwin attend the press night after the party for ‘When It Happens To You’ at The Park Theatre in London

It’s a joyful moment for Jodie Kidd.

No, no date for her wedding to former Royal Marine Joseph Bates, to whom she has been deeply engaged since 2021, but a grand return to the modelling career she began at the age of 16.

Jodie (45) describes it as an ‘incredible honour’ to be the face of the new Burberry campaign and says enthusiastically: ‘I had no idea that I would be working with the iconic British fashion house and its incredibly talented team on my comeback.’

Jodie, who has been married twice and has a son, Indio, with her ex-boyfriend and Argentinian polo player Andrea Vianini, has been landlady at the award-winning Half Moon pub in Kirdford, West Sussex, for the past few years.

Triple everywhere!

Jodie Kidd, 45, says it’s an ‘incredible honour’ to be the face of the new Burberry campaign

Jack laughs all the way to the bank

Roxy Horner, Jack Whitehall’s girlfriend, told me last month that she had acquired a taste for opera.

And Jack will have no trouble getting the best seats in Covent Garden for this model.

Jackpot Productions, the privately owned company that generates the stand-up comedian’s income, recently released its annual accounts, reporting that the company made a profit of £1.8 million last year.

The privately owned company that Jack Whitehall (pictured with Roxy Horner) uses to channel his income, Jackpot Productions, recently filed its accounts and reported that it made a profit of £1.8 million last year

His earnings – which amount to £35,000 a week – take the total income he has built up in the business to a staggering £11.4 million.

That’s almost £2 million more than last year.

Roxy, 33, gave birth to their first child, Elsie, last September, so their nanny can count on a hefty tip!

Touching gesture from Kate’s stepfather

Of course, Kate Beckinsale doesn’t need the money, but she will be touched to be named in the will of her stepfather, Roy Battersby, who died in January at the age of 87.

The television director, who worked on successful drama series such as A Touch of Frost, Cracker and Inspector Morse, left behind just £83,000.

According to recently released estate documents, he left specific instructions about how the money should be divided.

Not that Kate Beckinsale needs the money, of course, but she will be touched to be named in the will of her stepfather, Roy Battersby, who died in January at the age of 87.

He had five children and one stepdaughter, Beckinsale.

All six will receive a 15th share, which works out to around £5,600 each.

His eight grandchildren, including Kate’s daughter Lily, also an actress, will receive £2,800.