When Loretta Basey married the heir to the Rothschild dynasty close to a decade ago, she not only captivated society but raised eyebrows after it emerged she was a former glamour model from Essex.
But Lady Rothschild, as she has been officially known since taking her vows with her billionaire husband Nat in 2016, has never tried to shy away from her tabloid roots – and if anything, looks back in sheer delight at those days.
‘I’ve been described as worse things,’ the 34-year-old told The Telegraph in a rare interview.
‘But on Page 3 – honestly, I really want to make this clear: I’m so proud to have been a Page 3 girl and I will always celebrate that achievement.’
The mother-of-one these days is more into writing page turners than turning heads, with her hotly-tipped debut romance thriller, Finding Grace, set to hit the shelves next week.
She describes it as her latest ‘achievement’, a word she also fondly attaches to her former career in front of the camera.
‘I’ve worked really hard to do what I have – whether it’s Page 3 or my book,’ she explained, adding that she want to ‘carry on achieving things.’
It’s a degree of ambition in the well-spoken Lady Rothschild that Alison Webster, The Sun’s official Page 3 photographer, recognised was there right from the start.
When Loretta Basey married the heir to the Rothschild dynasty nearly a decade ago, she not only turned heads but raised eyebrows after it emerged she was a former glamour model
Today Nat and Loretta – who are 19 years apart in age – live a gilded life between their superyacht and multiple homes in London, Wiltshire, Los Angeles and Klosters, with an estimated wealth of up to £40billion
Loretta was formerly in a relationship with actor and comedian Steve Coogan and, according to one of her friends, she was ‘in love with him for a time’
Alison knew Lady Rothschild as Elle Basey, a name she went by for her glamour modelling in lads’ magazines and on Page 3.
But for conventional work — at 5ft 8in tall, she was a touch on the short side for the catwalk, so this was largely hair modelling — she went by her real name, Loretta Basey.
Speaking to MailOnline in 2016 prior to the couple’s impeccable wedding at the Swiss ski resort of Klosters, Alison recalled: ‘Elle was a great glamour model, a very beautiful girl with a fantastic figure, great boobs, small waist, good bum, and with the bluest eyes and lots of long, chestnut hair.
‘Being a glamour model is more difficult than you may think.
‘When you take your clothes off, every little blemish that you have is exposed and visible, but she had none.’
Elle was also a ‘very strong character’, says Alison, ‘a bright girl who was sure of herself and always in control.
‘And she was ambitious. We’d sit with a glass of wine after a day’s shoot and she’d tell me she wanted to make something more of herself. And I always felt that she would.’
It was during this time in her life that Lady Rothschild came to meet award-winning actor and comedian Steve Coogan in the unlikeliest of ways.
Nat became the 5th Baron Rothschild last February following the death of his father, Jacob
in 2011, in the guise of his comic creation Alan Partridge, divorcee Coogan guest-edited an edition of Loaded, the now defunct lads’ magazine.
A shoot ensured – and in one photograph, the actor was seen cupping Loretta’s breasts in his hands.
It certainly didn’t harm his chances with the stunning model, with the couple falling hard for one another.
Loretta shared his house in Lewes, East Sussex, for the best part of four years until 2014 and, according to one of her friends, she was ‘in love with him for a time’.
But meeting Coogan signalled the beginning of the end of her two-year stint as one of the most popular Page 3 girls, during which she appeared in The Sun more than 20 times.
‘He wasn’t keen on her continuing to do that kind of work,’ says Webster. ‘He guided her into giving it up.’
Loretta looks back at her relationship with Coogan with nothing by fondness, but it was Eton-educated Nat Rothschild, 53 and heir to the European banking dynasty, who ultimately swept her off her feet.
Nat became the 5th Baron Rothschild last February following the death of his father, Jacob, at the age of 87. Nat’s mother Serena, a thoroughbred racehorse owner, died a few years previously in 2019, aged 84.
Today Nat and Loretta – who are 19 years apart in age – live a gilded life between their superyacht and multiple homes in London, Wiltshire, Los Angeles and Klosters, with an estimated wealth of up to £40billion.
