Elizabeth Hurley is an actress and model who stormed into popularity when she appeared at the 1994 premiere of Mike Newell’s Four Weddings and a Funeral in a black Versace dress with big safety pins. Hurley, who had previously only been known as a friend of actor Hugh Grant, became the darling of the fashion world because her dress (next to her face, of course) was featured in every newspaper and magazine that had a fashion column, making her an instant star.
Since then, she has extended her high-profile celebrity status to other areas of her life, and her story makes for interesting reading.
Elizabeth Hurley – Who is She?
On June 10, 1965, the English actress Elizabeth Jane Hurley, widely known as Elizabeth Hurley or Liz Hurley, was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire, the daughter of the family of Roy Leonard and Angela Mary Hurley. She is the middle child of her father, a former Major of the Royal Army Educational Corps, and her mother, who taught at Kempshott Junior School and Holy Child School, Sonipat. Her siblings are Kathleen Hurley, an older sister, and Michael James Hurley, a younger brother.
It is not known exactly when the actress attended regular high school and college, but she attended Harriet Costello School and Queen Mary’s College, all in Basingstoke. Hurley, who aspired to a career in show business, also enrolled at London’s Studio Centre to study theater and dance but did not complete her studies as she was expelled from school in 1986 after only three years.
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Elizabeth Hurley Career and Net Worth
Elizabeth Hurley began her showbiz career first as an actress. Her acting career began in 1987 when she made her film debut in the movie Aria, which was followed by Passenger 57 (1992), Dangerous Ground (1997) and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997), Bedazzled (2000), Serving Sara (2002), Viktor (2014), among others. She made her television debut one year after her film debut, in 1988, when she was cast as Julia in an episode of the television series Inspector Morse. Others included Christabel, Act of Will, The Good Guys, Samson and Delilah, Gossip Girl, The Tomorrow People, The Royals, to name a few. In the latter, she played the leading role of Queen Helena.
She got her first modeling job in 1995, at the age of 29, when she was hired by Estée Lauder, a New York-based cosmetics and skincare company, as their spokesperson model. This was her very first attempt as a model, and she worked with the company as the face of her brand until she was replaced by American model Carolyn Murphy in 2001. However, she remained with Estée Lauder in other capacities and continues to work for the company today.
Her modeling career may have begun at Estée Lauder, but it definitely did not end with her. She has been involved in other advertising campaigns as a cover girl for top magazines and has also modeled for the online women’s fashion store, Saloni, Spanish fashion brand Mango, and French luxury leather company Lancel, to name a few. Hurley has a swimwear line – Elizabeth Hurley Beach, launched in April 2005, with a net worth estimated at $35 million.
Family Life – Husband, Son
Elizabeth Hurley is not married at the moment, but her love life is quite interesting. Her first official love affair came about in 1987 when she met Hugh Grant. At that time, Hurley was an unknown being who was just struggling to make it in the entertainment industry. They were never married but stayed together for 13 years before they went their separate ways in 2000. It is said that it was this relationship that opened the doors of Hollywood to the actress and the model.
After her relationship with Grant ended, she had an affair with American businessman Steve Bing in 2001, which resulted in a child – a boy named Damian Charles Hurley (born April 4, 2002). Bing initially denied being responsible for the child, but a DNA test proved otherwise. Finally, in 2007 she went to the altar with the Indian businessman Arun Nayar, whom she started dating sometime after the birth of her son in 2002. However, her marriage led Nayar’s parents to disown him after the Hindu religious community filed criminal charges against the couple for violating Indian wedding customs.
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Their marriage ended on June 15, 2011, after Hurley filed for divorce in April of the same year, citing “unreasonable conduct”. She moved on within a few weeks and announced her engagement to former Australian cricketer Shane Warne, which lasted 30 months but never ended in marriage.
Elizabeth Hurley Body Measurements
As a model, Elizbeth Hurley is expected to have a shape that makes heads roll, and that’s true. Her body measurements are as follows: 36-24-34 inches (breast-wist-hip) and her bra size is 34D. Hurley is 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 m) tall, weighs 61 kg, has a dress and shoe size of 8 (US), and 9.5 (US) respectively.
Other Facts
Elizabeth Hurley, in partnership with her former model client Estée Lauder, is committed to a breast cancer awareness initiative. She has worked with them on the project since she stepped down from her spokesperson in 2001. Estée Lauder created a lipstick line called “Elizabeth Pink”, whose lipstick sales were donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
The actress announced herself to the fashion world in 1994 when she appeared at the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral in the company of her then star Hugh Grant. Her performance was not the wow factor, but the dress she was wearing – a black Versace dress held together by large gold safety pins. After the event, she became a celebrity overnight when pictures of her flooded the tabloids.
She is the godmother of the two sons of David and Victoria Beckham – Brooklyn and Romeo.
In 2000 she was fined $100,000 by the Screen Actors Guild for filming a commercial when the actors were on strike.
