Jilly Cooper mourns death of Earl who was muse for romping rogue character in bestseller Riders
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Jilly Cooper mourns death of ‘huge fun’ Earl of Suffolk and Berkshire, 87, who was the muse for her romping rogue character in bestseller Riders
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Ever since Jilly Cooper created the caddish character Rupert Campbell-Black in her 1985 bestseller, Riders, fans of her ‘bonkbusters’ speculated feverishly about the identity of the real-life figure who had inspired her.
Then, in 2016, the novelist admitted there were, in fact, three men who led her to create the lothario who charmed stable girls and upper-class wives at will before winning an Olympic equestrian medal.
Now, however, Cooper is in mourning after the Earl of Suffolk and Berkshire, who was one of her three inspirations, died last week aged 87.
‘He was a lovely man — huge fun,’ the author, 85, tells Richard Eden of the thrice-married Earl, Michael Howard.
‘I first met him when I moved to Gloucester in 1982. Whenever he used to phone, he’d say, “It’s Rupert here”. So I said, “You know there are two more?” And he would say, “Yes, but I’m the real one”.’
Jilly Cooper is mourning the loss of Michael Howard, the Earl of Suffolk and Berkshire. Here the pair are pictured together in 2016
The Earl was one of three people who inspired her caddish character Rupert Campbell-Black in her bestseller Riders
The Earl owned Charlton Park estate in Wiltshire, where the Womad music festival is held.
Cooper adds: ‘Despite his title and status, he never made you feel inferior. All the best of Rupert, but without the awful parts.’
First married to Simone Litman in 1960, with whom he has a daughter, he then wed Anita Fugelsang in 1973 and had two children with her. A decade later, he married for the third time, to Linda Paravicini, with whom he also has two children.
Jilly Cooper, pictured here with the Earl in 2016, said he relished the role he played in forming the character
The Countess of Suffolk tells me: ‘We would have been married 40 years next year. I’m very lucky to have been able to spend so much time with him. He had enormous charm.’
She adds: ‘He suffered a stroke in April, so it was probably a relief for him in the end.’
Cooper’s other two inspirations for Campbell-Black were Andrew Parker Bowles, 82, the Duchess of Cornwall’s first husband, and fashion designer Rupert Lycett-Green, 83.