The All England Lawn Tennis Club’s annual championships at Wimbledon is one of the few events that perfectly encapsulate the British summer season. And in the first week of the famous tournament, HELLO! once again hosted a fabulous mix of stars from the worlds of fashion, TV, sport, comedy and society, in partnership with Emirates, the official airline partner of the Championships, for a wonderful day out.
Among those who mingled inside our exclusive suite within the VIP hospitality area were the actress Vanessa Williams, the socialite and heiress Nicky Hilton Rothschild, the model David Gandy and the West End star Dame Elaine Paige. The opera singer Katherine Jenkins and her husband, the artist and filmmaker Andrew Levitas, were also in attendance, alongside the modelling icon Marie Helvin.
© Hoda DavineOthers who joined us in the luxurious Emirates suite included the model twins Lady Eliza and Lady Amelia Spencer and Amelia’s husband, Greg Mallett, as well as the Marchioness of Bath, Emma Thynn, HELLO!'s society editor at large, the reality star Millie Mackintosh, the Olympian Michelle Griffith-Robinson and the Motherland star Paul Ready.
Welcome drinks
Guests were welcomed at a drinks reception overlooking the grounds. Dame Elaine Paige, an eager tennis fan, was first to arrive with her friend Paul Howe and the pair engaged in conversation over Lanson champagne with a debonair David Gandy.
Mille Mackintosh arrived with her friend Charlie Boud, fashion PR at K&H Comms, and was dressed on point with some incredible Joseph Azagury shoes with tennis balls embellishments and a Boodles tennis bracelet featuring a diamond-encrusted tennis ball.
“My stylist is incredible,” Millie told us. “She found all these tennis-themed accessories!”
© Hoda DavaineA caviar station
Guests enjoyed drinks and canapés, tucking into bespoke caviar bellinis from the Emirates caviar station – a luxury that guests on First Class Emirates flights can also enjoy.
After everyone was seated, they heard welcome speeches from Sophie Vokes-Dudgeon, HELLO!’s chief content officer, and Jon Sheppard, the head of commercial and national sales for Emirates.
Guests were then served lunch. The starters were Isle of Wight tomato, nectarine and tea-smoked ricotta or Scottish native lobster with Yukon Gold potatoes, caviar and creme fraiche. For the main course, guests could choose between a rump of Herdwick lamb with smoked carrot puree and wilted spinach or halibut with cauliflower puree, courgette and smoked trout tartare sauce – followed by strawberries and cream (of course!) for pudding.
Birthday wishes
The Ugly Betty star Vanessa Williams, 63, came with her daughter Melanie Hervey, who was celebrating her 39th birthday. Vanessa, who was wearing a dress from The Fold, is currently living in the UK while starring as Miranda Priestly in the West End production of The Devil Wears Prada. She said she was considering a permanent move to these shores despite her run coming to an end in October.
"I'd love to continue to work here and live,” she said. “I'm definitely open to a place here. My house is for sale, I'm in negotiations right now, so it's very up in the air. I'm very nimble! So we'll see.”
She talked about meeting the King while at the Royal Variety Performance. "I did a quick magic trick with Penn and Teller, and I had to open up a padlock. I had a little trouble getting it open, so [the King] mentioned, 'You had a little trouble getting that lock open'. But that was the only cheeky thing that was said.”
© Hoda DavaineElsewhere, Marie Helvin – who was wearing white linen trousers by Faithfull and a top by H&M – posed for photographs with her fellow model David Gandy. “What a treat to be invited here today. I was so pleased to be a guest of hello!. Thank you,” she said.
The comedian Katherine Ryan, who was celebrating her 43rd birthday, was wearing an outfit by Paul Costelloe. The star was uncharacteristically coy about it being her big day. “I get enough attention,” she said. “I don’t need to make a fuss about my birthday.” Her forthcoming book, First Born Daughter, will be published in October.
Katherine, who attended with her husband, Bobby Kootstra, joked: “My favourite thing [about Wimbledon] is the refreshments, I have to say. Tennis is fine, but I don’t know the rules. I feel confused throughout. I don’t know any of the men or how to say their names. I know the Williams sisters and that young British one. End of list.
© Hoda Davaine“But strawberries and cream, champagne, white wine, a G&T – that just rolls off the tongue. The atmosphere, the beautiful flowers and the fashion are what I come for.”
Nicky Hilton Rothschild attended with her good friend Fernando Garcia, creative director of the fashion brand Monse. The recent HELLO! Luxe cover star, who wore a stunning blue-and-white striped dress by the label, told us: “There is nothing quite like Wimbledon in the summer. It’s one of my favourite traditions every year. From the incredible tennis to the classic fashion and strawberries and cream, it’s such a special day in London.”
© Hoda DavaineDame Elaine Paige, 78, was resplendent in an Alice + Olivia floral suit which she bought on King’s Road especially for the day. The BBC Radio 2 presenter is such a fan of tennis that she plays the sport three times a week.
“Wimbledon is my favourite time of the year and has been since about the age of eight. I’m obsessed with tennis. I play it three times a week, if I can, at the Queen’s Club. To come here today and see all the people and the atmosphere... it’s like the biggest treat for me.”
Katherine Jenkins was another fan of the sport. The previous day had been her 46th birthday and she spent it at the Championships, staying until 10.30pm to watch the matches on Centre Court.
© Hoda DavaineEmma Thynn, who is friends with the tennis player Serena Williams, opened up to hello! about Serena’s return to Wimbledon later that day following a four-year hiatus. "Serena said she did it [returning] for her daughters. I think that's the best thing in the world to show them how strong she is and how she is doing it with such joy and enthusiasm.
“They've been out on the court with her practising. It's the sweetest, most inspirational thing ever. She's brilliant, she's strong and she's doing all the things and just doing it with such grace as always.” Emma later went to meet the tennis star herself in her private suite.
Speaking of daughters, David Gandy talked proudly about his children – Matilda, seven, and Tabitha, four – with his partner, the barrister Stephanie Mendoros. "I just love every part of parenting. It's tough, it's one of the hardest things, but one of the greatest things you'll do. I just love hanging around with my children more than anyone else in the world.
© Hoda Davaine“Kids are very truthful, they are very innocent and inquisitive, so I love the inquisitiveness of them asking questions about everything and me trying to have answers about everything, which I don't think about sometimes.
"You see things through their eyes – things I've experienced before, but you get to see through their eyes and see their excitement as well."
A newlywed day out
The actor Will Peltz, whose sister Nicola is married to Brooklyn Beckham, attended with his new wife, Kenya Kinski-Jones, daughter of the legendary music producer Quincy Jones. The couple, who married only two weeks earlier, were spending part of their “mini-moon” in London.
"This is our first Wimbledon and we are loving it,” Will said. “We go back to America tomorrow and this is the last day of our mini-moon. Coming here has been so special.”
The Motherland star Paul Ready revealed that he would be open to an appearance in the show’s hit spin-off series, Amandaland.
© Hoda DavaineAn Amandaland cameo?
Paul, who played Kevin, a stay-at-home father, in Motherland, shared his thoughts on whether there was any chance of Kevin rekindling his surprise romance with Amanda, played by Lucy Punch – a major plot twist in the show’s third season.
"No, I think that's dead. I think that's it. But you never know. I mean, never say never." He added: "I love Amandaland. Lucy's incredible."
Missé Beqiri, star of Ladies of London: The New Reign, was making her first public appearance since the shocking death in May of the TV star Jake Hall, her former boyfriend and the father of her eight-year-old daughter River. She told us how breaking the news of his death to their daughter was the "hardest thing [she's] ever had to do”.
"It has been heartbreaking for us and the family,” she said. “We really miss him so much, and, knowing him, I know he would want us to do the best we can and keep going. We're just keeping his name alive and taking it day by day.”
Afternoon tea
After taking in the action in the singles matches on Centre Court – first watching the Polish player Iga Świątek, the defending champion, beat the American player Taylor Townsend, and Alexander Zverev from Germany survive a tough first-round test from the 21-year-old Belgian player Alexander Blockx – guests returned to the suite for afternoon tea.
More tennis was then on the menu, with many keen to see Serena Williams make her long-awaited return, playing singles on Centre Court. The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion played an epic three sets before eventually losing to Australia’s Maya Joint, 20, who is currently ranked No 45 in the world in doubles.
Light bites in the form of lobster rolls and cheese and caviar toasties were served in the early evening, before guests made their way home from SW19 after a sensational day.
