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Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965) is an English actress,
fashion model, producer and designer.
 Early
life
Elizabeth Hurley was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire, England in 1965. Hurley's
father, a lapsed Catholic of Irish descent, was a British Army major, while her
mother, an Anglican, was a schoolteacher at Kempshott Infant School. She has an
older sister, Debbie, and a younger brother, Michael.
Hurley took ballet classes as a child. She went to Kempshott Junior and Infants
school, and the Harriet Costello School now known as Costello Technology College.
Hurley later attended Queen Mary's College, Basingstoke, for one year, followed by
Basingstoke College of Technology and won a scholarship to the London Studio
Centre.
Whilst in her teens and before she was in the public eye, she became involved with
punk fashion, where she dyed her hair pink and pierced her nose. She associated
with New Age Travellers who, typically, sat under The Buttercross monument and the
grounds of the Cathedral in Winchester, near to where she lived.
Career
A start in Hurleys' career came in the late 1980s, when she won a Face of the Year
competition at a local newspaper in Winchester, and gained a year's modelling
contract with a prestigious London firm as the first prize. She made her first film
appearance in Aria in 1987 and attracted some attention with the Dennis
Potter-directed UK TV movie Christabel in the late 1980s, and appeared in several
low budget English and Hollywood films, including the 1992 thriller Passenger 57,
in which Hurley played a stewardess. She also appeared on television on both sides
of the Atlantic, appearing in the British series Rumpole of the Bailey and the
George Lucas-produced The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.
In 1994 Hurley attended the London première of the film Four Weddings and a Funeral
starring her then-companion Hugh Grant. Hurley's appearance in a black plunging
Versace dress held together with gold safety pins gained her considerable media
attention. It has often been referred to simply as "that dress" and is credited
with the launch of her high profile career. Following Versace's murder in 1997, the
London Times' obituary cited it as the thing for which the subject was best
known.
In 1995 Hurley began working with top cosmetics company Estée Lauder as their main
spokes model. Within her first month with the company, Hurley launched the
best-selling perfume, Pleasures. In 2007 Hurley's contract with Estée Lauder was
renewed for the 13th year with a subsequent contract extension.
Hurley and Grant had previously joined forces to create Simian Films, a production
company, during their relationship. Through this joint venture Hurley produced two
films starring Grant, Extreme Measures (1996) and Mickey Blue Eyes (1999). She also
produced the 2004 film Method in which she starred. In 2006 the company was
dissolved as both Hurley and Grant focused on other projects.
Hurley was cast as the female lead as Vanessa Kensington in the hit Mike Myers spy
comedy Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery in 1997 which gained her further
crucial exposure in the film industry. After the success of that film, she reprised
the role of Vanessa in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me in 1999 and appeared
in several more high-profile films, including EdTV, Bedazzled, Double Whammy and
2002's Serving Sara, which was her last American film to date. Hurley also hosted
the first season of the British reality series Project Catwalk featuring novice
fashion designers.
Hurley became a favourite with the press again in 2000 when she fell foul of US
acting unions. She had filmed an advertisement for Estée Lauder which broke a
five-month strike. She was subsequently fined £70,000 by the Screen Actors Guild.
She apologised for breaking the strike but said she had been unaware that it was
going on as she had been based in the UK and the union had not informed her of the
industrial action. She was confronted by a protest of angry actors at the US
première of her film Bedazzled in October where protesters brandished banners
stating "Elizabeth Scably".
In 2005 Hurley's beachwear line Elizabeth Hurley Beach debuted in select Saks Fifth
Avenue stores in the United States, Harrod's in the UK, various other locations
worldwide and through her website. In 2006, the line expanded its distribution
among Europe, the Middle East, Australia and Asia. In 2007, Hurley was voted best
"British Body Idol" in New Woman magazine. 5,000 women cast their votes on which
British woman they thought was the best body idol.
Charity
work
Since she signed with Estée Lauder, Hurley has taken an active role in the
company's breast cancer charity. Hurley revealed that her grandmother died from
breast cancer because for a number of years she refused to reveal the existence of
a lump. By the time this was revealed, it was too late to save her life. Hurley was
the Mistress of Ceremonies at "The Hot Pink Party" at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in
New York City to mark the tenth anniversary of the Breast Cancer Research
Foundation. Additionally, Estée Lauder created a lipstick named "Elizabeth Pink"
after Hurley; proceeds from the sale of every tube of "Elizabeth Pink" benefit The
Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
Hurley has also acted as mistress of ceremonies for The Prince's Trust, a charity
founded by Prince Charles which aids youth in Great Britain. She has also helped
cricketer and friend Imran Khan with his cancer hospital in Pakistan. Ironically,
Imran's ex-wife was the girlfriend of Hurley's ex boyfriend, Hugh Grant, connecting
all four together.
Personal
life
Hurley had a high profile 13-year relationship with actor Hugh Grant, spanning from
1986-2000. After their relationship ended, the two reportedly remained cordial.
Hurley's romantic relationship with American billionaire Ted Forstmann is also
thought to have begun in 2000. After dating, the two remained friends. In October
2000, Hurley began a relationship with multi-millionaire American film producer
Stephen Bing. In 2001 Hurley revealed that she was pregnant with Bing's child, but
the couple had already separated after 18 months together, before the announcement
was made. Bing publicly questioned the paternity of the child and disputed Hurley's
description of a faithful relationship.
On 4 April 2002, Hurley gave birth to a son, Damian Charles Hurley. In June 2002
DNA test conducted four months after the child's birth vindicated Hurley, and Bing
was proven to be the father after much dispute. Hugh Grant is one of Damian's
godfathers. Hurley is thought to have negotiated a $2.1 million deal for the first
photos with her son.
According to the Daily Mail in 2004, Hurley has earned £13 million through her
career. Elizabeth Hurley maintains three homes: in London; in Ampney Crucis, a
village in Gloucestershire; and in Beverly Hills, California.
Wedding
On 2 March 2007, Hurley married Indian businessman Arun Nayar in a secret service
at Sudeley Castle, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. The couple were due to get
married on March 3, 2007, but decided to keep the ceremony private so held it one
day early but with only the guests being informed of this change in date. Hurley
contracted an exclusive magazine deal with magazine Hello!, thought to be worth £2
to 5 million with the overall cost of the wedding being estimated at a total of £2
million. Many famous celebrities attended the wedding ceremonies and other
celebrations. Some included Elton John, David Furnish, Elle Macpherson, Donatella
Versace, Patsy Kensit, Trinny Woodall, Susannah Constantine, Tamara Mellon, Eva
Herzigova, Janet Street-Porter, Valentino, Tracey Emin, Prince Pavlos,
Marie-Chantal Miller, Tom Ford, Flavio Briatore, Tania Bryer and Leonard
Lauder.
The wedding festivities continued in Mumbai, India where they joined a private
celebration held at Juhu Beach before moving on to Jodhpur, India. In Jodhpur, they
held a private Hindu ceremony held at Umaid Bhawan Palace, where she wore couture
sari made especially by her designer friend Donatella Versace. On the eve of the
Hindu marriage, the couple held a sangeet, a traditional night of music, at the
Nagaur Fort, 90 miles outside the city, where Hurley had her hands and feet
decorated with intricate henna designs. Hurley performed the sangeet with close
friends Trinny Woodall and Janet Street-Porter. The ceremony followed by private
candle-lit reception on March 8 at Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur. The whole fort was
decorated with lights for the function. On Hurley and Nayar's arrival outside
Mehrangarh fort in Jodhpur, a fight broke out between reporters and security guards
when reporters tried to block the celebrity couple's Bentley as it entered the
venue for a dinner. The journalists and paparazzi then chased the car into the
fort, forcing a lockdown.
Source : Some of the information on
this page came from a Wikipedia article and is licensed under the GNU
Documentation License. ©2008 www.geneticmatrix.com.
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Elizabeth Hurley
- Projector - Biography
