Sam Mendes is no stranger to theatrics and a big budget, having directed James Bond films Skyfall and Spectre.
But the Oscar winner’s latest project, complete with the codename ‘Red Eagle’, was not a 007 mission – instead, it was the blueprint for his 60th birthday party.
The Mail on Sunday can reveal the setting for Sir Sam’s bash this month was a stunning mansion he has bought on the Dorset coast, with panoramic sea views out to the Isle of Wight.
He is understood to have invited more than 100 celebrity guests. Those spotted in the area who are thought to have attended include Nicole Kidman, Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband Matthew Broderick, and Dame Emma Thompson. Fleabag’s ‘hot priest’ Andrew Scott and Gladiator star Paul Mescal were also seen.
Getting to the party, however, was no easy feat. Guests received invitations which were said to have contained directions provided by What3Words – a navigation app that generates three-word codes to pinpoint exact locations.
One local source told the MoS: ‘The invitation had special instructions on it and codenames.
‘The guests kept saying “Red Eagle” – so I guess that was Sam.’
The party continued late into the night and attendees were seen leaving in high spirits.
Sam Mendes (right) is no stranger to theatrics and a big budget, having directed James Bond films Skyfall and Spectre. Pictured with his wife Alison Balsom
The Mail on Sunday can reveal the setting for Sir Sam’s bash this month was a stunning mansion he has bought on the Dorset coast, with panoramic sea views out to the Isle of Wight. Pictured: The Pig on the Beach restuarant and Hotel in Studland
He is understood to have invited more than 100 celebrity guests including Nicole Kidman
However, sources added that codenames had ‘all but been abandoned’ by the end of the evening.
Sir Sam, who has won multiple awards for his directing on stage and screen, including a best director Oscar for American Beauty, has worked with many of the big names in Hollywood over the years.
He is married to trumpeter Alison Balsom, having previously been married to Titanic star Kate Winslet until their divorce in 2011. He and Ms Winslet have a son, 21-year-old actor Joe Anders.
Sir Sam has a £6 million property in Buckinghamshire, which he renovated last year, submitting plans for a new swimming pool, a greenhouse and upgrades to the garden.
Land Registry documents also show that he splashed out £6 million with Ms Balsom on the four-bedroom hunting lodge in Dorset in 2023 – £1 million over the asking price.
It is located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and boasts stained-glass windows and direct access to a beach.
The house has been used as a filming location for period dramas and once hosted George VI and Sir Winston Churchill.
But Sir Sam’s birthday bash may have been the property’s most glamorous event to date.
Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband Matthew Broderick were also in attendance
As well as Emma Thompson, as it is understood Mendes invited more than 100 celebrity guests
Ms Kidman, 58, who worked with the director on The Blue Room, a West End play which transferred to Broadway, is said to have arrived by helicopter.
It is understood that her ex-husband and fellow Hollywood actor Tom Cruise, 63, was also on the guest list but did not attend.
He was seen earlier this summer at David Beckham’s 50th birthday celebrations at a London restaurant with his new girlfriend, Cuban actress Ana de Armas, 37. Several A-list guests who did make it to Sir Sam’s party stayed in the luxury Pig on the Beach hotel beforehand.
It was closed to the public but the restaurant remained open, and diners were said to have been left ‘surprised’ to see celebrities gathering in the garden.
Many of the attendees had previously worked with Sir Sam. In his latest project, a four-part Beatles biopic, Paul Mescal, 29, is starring as Paul McCartney, with Babygirl actor Harris Dickinson, also 29 – who is also said to have stayed at the luxury hotel – taking on the role of John Lennon.
The films focus on each of the band members and are due to be released in 2028.
Sir Sam has said he is ‘honoured to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time’, adding that he is ‘excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies’.
Another guest, Andrew Scott, played high-ranking MI6 official Max Denbigh, also known as ‘C’, in Spectre, and worked with Sir Sam on First World War epic 1917. Ben Whishaw – who played Q in Skyfall and Spectre – also attended.
Fleabag ’s ‘hot priest’ Andrew Scott (left) and Gladiator star Paul Mescal were also seen
And Love Actually star Dame Emma has not worked directly with Sir Sam but played a key role in introducing him to his ex-wife.
It is not clear whether Ms Winslet, 49, was invited. The couple married spontaneously in the presence of three friends on the Caribbean island of Anguilla in 2003 and they were together for almost a decade. But they separated following tensions while working together on the film Revolutionary Road – ironically, about a marriage which is torn apart.
In a statement, the couple said their split was ‘entirely amicable and by mutual consent’. Ms Winslet is now on her third marriage, this time to Edward Abel Smith – formerly known as Ned Rocknroll – who is the nephew of Virgin billionaire Sir Richard Branson. Meanwhile, Sir Sam married Ms Balsom, 46, in 2017.
They have a daughter, Phoebe, and Ms Balsom has a son from her previous relationship with conductor Edward Gardner.
Sir Sam is frequently named among the most powerful people in the British arts scene. He also directed Road To Perdition with Tom Hanks.
The director’s representatives have been contacted for comment.
