Sir John Robert Chartres Seale, 6th Baronet 1954-2026

 Sir John Robert Chartres Seale, 6th Baronet, died 29 July, 2026. He was 71.

He was born 17 August, 1954, son of Sir John Henry Seale, 5th Baronet (1921-2017), and his wife the former Ray Josephine Chartres (1925-2009); and succeeded to the baronetcy (cr UK, 1838), on his father's death, 26 January, 2017.

He married 8 September, 1996, Michelle Taylor, daughter of Kevan Taylor, of Mattishall, Norfolk, by whom he had issue, twin sons, Christopher and Joshua. The elder son, Christopher Charles Seale (born 16 March, 2002), succeeds as 7th baronet.

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Sir Alexander McGrigor, Bt, engaged to Laura Godfrey-Faussett

  The engagement was announced 15 August, 2026, between Sir Alexander James Edward Lyon McGrigor, 7th Baronet (born 5 August, 1998), son of the late Sir James Angus Rhoderick Neil McGrigor, 6th Baronet (1949-2025), and Lady McGrigor, of Dalmally, Argyll,  (nee Emma Mary Louise Fellowes, scion of that landed gentry family), & Laura Christian Elizabeth Godfrey-Faussett (born 3 January, 1997), elder daughter of Christopher Bryan Godfrey-Faussett (born 26 August, 1963), of Midlem, Selkirkshire, and his wife the Lady Diana Evelyn Bowes Lyon (born 29 December, 1966).

Laura Godfrey-Faussett is a granddaughter of the late 17th Earl of Strathmore & Kinghorne (1928-1987), and a second cousin once removed of His Majesty King Charles III.

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The Countess of Northesk 1942-2026

The Countess of Northesk, wife of the 15th Earl, died 11 August, 2026. She was 83.

She was Jill Gomez, the opera singer, a soprano who went 'topless for Tippett' and played the scandalous Duchess of Argyll. 

She was thought to be the first opera star to go topless on the stage of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, or at least the first to do so in front of a paying audience. 

Jill Gomez was born in New Amsterdam, British Guiana, 21 September, 1942. She was the elder of two daughters of Albert Gomez, a sugar technologist and “Spanish version of Clark Gable”, and his wife Denise, née Denham (born 1917), a gifted actress and musician who had left her native Cheshire during the Second World War to join the imperial censorship operation, checking mail from troops stationed in the Caribbean.

Jill Gomez married in 2010, her long-time partner Patrick Carnegy, the 15th Earl of Northesk (born 23 September, 1940), a music and theatre critic and the author of Wagner and the Art of Theatre (2006).

 Lord Northesk, who succeeded to the peerage, 28 March, 2010, is the son of the Rev. Canon Patrick Charles Alexander Carnegy (1893-1969), and his wife the former Joyce Eleanor Townsley (who died 1995).

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Eyston/Jack engagement

 The engagement was announced 15 August, 2026, between Thomas More Eyston (born 5 September, 1999), scion of that landed gentry family, son of Edward Thomas Ivor Eyston (born 1 April, 1969), of East Hendred, Oxfordshire, and his wife the former Alexandra Louise Grounds, & Tandia L. Jack, eldest daughter of Guy Jack (born 1967), of Nairobi, and Mrs Jack.

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Matilda Skye Elizabeth Greenly (born 2026)

  Sarah Elizabeth Greenly [née Hatchard, born 1988], wife of Sam James Howorth Greenly [born 1988], scion of that landed gentry family, gave birth to a daughter, Matilda Skye Elizabeth, 16 April, 2026, a sister for Rafe Merlin Howorth, born 22 March, 2021, and for Max Otis Howorth, born 10 October, 2022. 

Sam Greenly is a son of Richard Anthony Howorth Greenly [born 1948], by his wife the former Belinda Audrey Lockett.

Sarah Greenly is a daughter of John Rayner Hatchard [born 1953] and his wife the former Diana McGill [born 1954].

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John Flinders Highley 1948-2026

 John Flinders Highley died 4 August, 2026.

He was born in 1948, son of Samuel Miller Highley (1906-1981), and his wife the former Dora Sophia Beatrice Flinders (1913-1981), and married 17 September, 1977, Harriet Louisa Aykroyd (born 15 October, 1951), scion of the Aykroyd baronets, daughter of Colonel Harold Hammond Aykroyd, OBE, MC, TD (1896-1974), and his second wife the former Kathleen Ellen Tyrrell-Gray (1914-2005), by whom he had two sons, Samuel (born 1981), and Henry (born 1985).

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Mark Norman Kemp-Gee 1945-2026

 Mark Norman Kemp-Gee, died 9 August, 2026. He was 80.

He was born in 1945, son of Bernard Maurice Kemp-Gee (1912-1993), and his wife the former Ann Mackilligin; and married 26 July, 1980, the Hon Lucy Lyttelton (born 10 June, 1954), third daughter of the 10th Viscount Cobham, KG GCMG GCVO TD PC (1909-1977), and his wife the former Elizabeth Alison Makeig-Jones (1915-1986), by whom he had three sons, Henry, Robert and John.

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Gervase Michael Buxton 1939-2026

Gervase Michael Buxton, who died 10 August, 2026, aged 87, was a scion of the Buxton baronets.

He was born 2 January, 1939, the eldest son of Michael Auriol Buxton (1914-1990), and his wife Elizabeth Edith Millicent Elwes (1916-2003), scion of that landed gentry family; & married 2 March, 1965, Susan Margaret McKenzie, daughter of (Kenneth) Malcolm McKenzie, of Hans Place, London,  by whom he had two sons, Matthew (born 28 Sept, 1967), and Jocelyn (born 1972), and two daughters, Lucy (born 23 Aug, 1966), and Caragh (born 1969).

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The Baron Snape 1942-2026

 The Baron Snape, a Labour life peer, died 12 August, 2026. He was 84.

Peter Charles Snape was born 12 February, 1942. He served as Labour MP for West Bromwich East Feb 1974-2001

Snape was the chairman of his hometown football club, Stockport County, as well as being a major shareholder in the club at the time of his chairmanship. He became vice-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Speedway Racing in July 2015.

In 2004 he was raised to the peerage for life as Baron Snape, of Wednesbury in the County of West Midlands on 9 June 2004.

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Faber/Ramirez engagement

 The engagement was announced 14 August, 2026, between Henry Mark Tufnell Faber (born 20 March, 1992), son of David James Christian Faber (born 7 July, 1961), and his first wife the former Sally Elizabeth Gilbert (born 1963), & Carolina R. Ramirez, daughter of Mr & Mrs Samuel Ramirez, of Sutton Place, New York, United States.

Henry Faber is a grandson of Julian Tufnell Faber (1917-2002), and his wife the Lady Anne Caroline Macmillan (1923-2016), daughter of (Maurice) Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC, FRS (1894-1986), Prime Minister 1957-63, & his wife the Lady Dorothy Evelyn Cavendish, GBE (1900-1966), daughter of the 9th Duke of Devonshire, KG, GCMG, GCVO, TD, PC, JP, FRS (1868-1938).

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Carole Jennifer Andrée Forbes 1948-2026

 Carole Jennifer Andrée Forbes died 5 August 2026. She was the first wife of the 23rd Lord Forbes.

She born in 1948, and was a daughter of Norman Stanley Whitehead, of Aberdeen. She married firstly, 30 January, 1969 (div. 1982), the then Hon Malcolm Neil Forbes, Master of Forbes (born 6 May, 1946), son and heir of the 22nd Lord Forbes (1918-2013), and his wife the Hon Rosemary Katherine Hamilton-Russell (1921-2019), daughter of the 9th Viscount Boyne (1864-1942). Her first husband succeeded his father, 5 March, 2013, as 23rd Lord Forbes.

She married 2ndly, 2006, Dennis William Harding. She leaves issue, a daughter the Hon Joanna Carole Forbes (born 23 April, 1972), and was predeceased by her only son, the Hon Neil Malcolm Ross Forbes, Master of Forbes (born 10 March, 1970, died 2017).

Her grandson, Geordie Andrew Malcolm Forbes, Master of Forbes (born 28 November, 2010), is heir to his grandfather.

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Harry Arthur Cecil Russell 1931-2026

 Harry Arthur Cecil Russell, who died at Camberwell, Victoria, Australia, 7 August, 2026, aged 94, was a scion of the Russell baronets [cr 1812].

He was born 31 August, 1931, the younger son of Evelyn Aylmer Cecil Russell (1891-1963), and his 2nd wife the former Irene Brodrick.

He married in 1959, Marjorie Ailsa Sutton [1929-2015], daughter of Arthur Sutton, of Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia, by whom he had issue, a son Ewen (born 1967), and two daughters, Sarah (born 1962), Virginia Kate Cecil (born 1961).

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Diane Maxwell (died 2026)

Diane Maxwell died 29 July, 2026, aged 89.

She was born 28 August 1936, daughter of William Lister Hartley (1904-1969), and his wife the former Lucila Ethel D'Alkaine (1903-1976), and married 1stly, 4 April, 1956, (John Michael) Anthony Hanbury-Williams (1933-1997), head of that landed gentry family, son of Sir John Hanbury-Williams, Kt, CVO (1892-1965), and his wife Princess Zenaida Cantacuzene (1908-1980), and married 2ndly, Timothy Maxwell.

She had children from her first marriage, three sons, Nicholas (born 1 Jan, 1957), Charles (born 18 Nov, 1958) and Michael (born 28 June, 1961, died 8 May, 2026), and a daughter, Victoria (born 27 Oct, 1967).

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Lodwick/Riddell engagement

 The engagement was announced 11 August, 2026, between George Rupert Maguire Lodwick (born 1994), son of Jeremy Goulding Lodwick (born 1961), of Ashley Manor, near Tetbury, Gloucestershire, and his wife the former ____Weerner, and Henrietta Mary Riddell (born 1994), scion of that landed gentry family of Felton and Swinburne, daughter of Simon Francis Riddell (born 1961), of Cheeseburn Grange, Northumberland, and his wife the former Joanna Lucy Horlock (born 1962).

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Margaret Joan Vereker 1929-2026

 Margaret Joan Vereker, who died 23 July, 2026, aged 96, was a scion of the Viscounts Gort.

She was born 9 December, 1929, the elder daughter of Maurice Charles Prendergast Vereker (1884-1963), and his wife the former Winifred Joan Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (1897-1982), scion of the Barons Saye & Sele. She was Unmarried.

She was a great-granddaughter of the 4th Viscount Gort (1819-1900), and a great-great-granddaughter of the 10th Baron Saye & Sele (1799-1887).

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Murton/Browne engagement

The engagement was announced 10 August, 2026, between Joshua Edward Murton (born September, 1995), the only son of Francis Gerald Murton (born Dec, 1966), of St Helier, Jersey, and his wife the former Shân L. Rees (born circa 1963), and Ophelia Alexandra Browne (born 17 May, 1994), scion of the Barons Oranmore & Browne, elder daughter of Shaun Dominick Browne (born 22 January, 1964), of Castle Camps, Cambridgeshire,  heir presumptive to the Oranmore peerage, and his wife the former Elizabeth Jane Bird (born 1972).

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Sir Basil Henry David Montgomery, 9th Baronet CVO 1931-2026

 Sir Basil Henry David Montgomery, 9th Baronet, CVO, died at Kinross, 3 August, 2026. He was 95.

Known as Sir David Montgomery, he served as Lord Lieutenant of Perth and Kinross from 1995 having been Vice Lord Lieutenant 1966-74. He was Chairman of the Forestry Commission 1979-89.

 He was born 20 March, 1931, son of Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Keith Purvis-Russell-Montgomery, OBE (1896-1954), and his wife the former Cynthia Louisa Maconochie-Welwood (1900-1996(), descended from the Viscounts Strathallan.

He succeeded to the baronetcy, 28 January, 1964, on the death of his uncle, Sir Basil Montgomery, 8th Baronet.

He married 5 April, 1956, Delia Reid (1935-2019), daughter of Admiral Sir John Peter Lorne Reid, GCB, CVO (1903-1973), by his wife the former Jean Dundas (1909-1971), scion of the Dundas baronets, by whom he had issue, two sons, James and Andrew, and four daughters, Caroline, Davina, Iona and Laura.

His elder son, James David Keith Montgomery (born 13 June, 1957), succeeds as 10th baronet.

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Baroness Duncan-Sandys 1929-2026

 Baroness Duncan-Sandys, who died 31 July, 2026, was the second wife and widow of the life peer, the Baron Duncan-Sandys, CH (1908-1997).

She was Marie-Claire Schmitt, daughter of Adrien Schmitt, of Paris, France, and married 1stly, 14 October, 1948 (div 1961), the 2nd Viscount Hudson (1924-1963), son of the 1st Viscount Hudson (1886-1957), and his wife the former Hannah Randolph (who died 24 April, 1969); and married 2ndly, in 1962, as his second wife, Edwin Duncan Sandys, CH, PC (born 24 January, 1908, died 26 November, 1987), raised to the peerage for life in 1974 as Baron Duncan-Sandys, former husband of Churchill's daughter Diana Spencer-Churchill (1909-1963), and son of Capt George John Sandys.

From her first marriage she leaves a daughter, Annabel (born 1952).

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Nicola Mary Brown (née Minoprio) 1947-2026

Nicola Mary Brown, who died 29 July, 2026, aged 79, was a scion of the Minoprio landed gentry family.

She was born 9 January, 1947, a daughter of Frank Hilary Minoprio (1913-1980), and his wife Mary Wiloughby Renison (1914-1993); and married in 1967, Ca[t Michael Charles Brow (1945-2019), son of Horace Charles Brown (1906-1983), of Pymoor, Ely, Cambridgeshire, and his wife Florence Hard (1906-1980), by whom she had two sons, Guy and Christopher, and a daughter, Georgina.

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Jean Margaret Shaughnessy 1927-2026

 Jean Margaret Shaughnessy, who died 5 August, 2026, the day after her 99th birthday. She was an actress.

Jean Shaughnessy

She was born Jean Margaret Lodge, 4 August, 1927, daughter of George Lodge, of Kirkella, Yorkshire, and married 18 September, 1948, Capt Alfred James Shaughnessy, Grenadier Guards (1916-2005), playwright, scion of the Barons Shaughnessy, second son of the Hon Alfred Thomas Shaughnessy (1887-19176), and his wife Sarah Polk Bradford (1891-1955), later wife of the Hon Sir Piers Legh, GCVO (1890-1955).

She leaves two sons, Charles George Patrick Shaughnessy (born 9 Feb, 1955), actor, who succeeded his second cousin in 2007, as the 5th Baron Shaughnessy, and David James Bradford Shaughnessy (born 3 March, 1957).

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Bannister/Whitson engagement

The engagement was announced 8 August, 2026, between Austin Z. Bannister, son of Mr Garth Bannister, of Brisbane, Australia, and Ms Catherine Dupré, of Biggar, Scotland, and India Hebe Vanda Whitson (born 2004), younger daughter of James Alexander Whitson (1973-2024), descended from the Wrixon-Becher baronets, and his wife Ms Tamara Whitson (nee O'Connor), of Berwick St Leonard, Wiltshire.

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Legard/Walker marriage

The marriage took place 1st August, 2026, at the Garrison Church of St George, Bulford, between Alexander Thomas Legard (born 25 January, 1999), scion of the Legard baronets, second son of Edward Thomas Legard (born 9 November, 1966), of Charlcot, near Masham, North Yorkshire, by his wife the former Lucy Frances Kirkpatrick (born 30 January, 1967), & Sophie Juanita D. Walker (born 14 May, 1999), daughter of General Sir (Charles) Roland Vincent (Roly) Walker, KCB, DSO (born 14 May, 1970), Chief of the General Staff and ADC to HM The King, of Castle Frome, Herefordshire, and his wife the former Kate Leonore White-Thomson (born 1970), scion of that landed gentry family, and descended from the Barons Clinton.

Alexander Legard is a grandson of Sir Charles Legard, 15th Baronet (1938-2025).

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Rafe William Simon Winston Morant (born 2026)

 Lady Antonia Mary Catherine Morant (nee Peel, born 14 December, 1991), wife of Hubert George H.J. Morant (born 26 April, 1993), gave birth to a son, Rafe William Simon Winston, 1st August, 2026, a brother for Martha Charlotte Marigold, who was born 22 February, 2024.

Hubert, scion of the Morant landed gentry family, is a son of Simon Nicholas Gale Morant (born 19 June, 1943), of Buckland Marsh, Oxfordshire, and his wife the former Jacqueline Susan Rich. 

Lady Antonia is a daughter of the 3rd Earl Peel, GCVO, PC, DL [born 3 Oct, 1947], former Lord Chamberlain to Queen Elizabeth II, whose home is at Gunnerside, Swaledale, North Yorkshire, by his second wife the former Hon Charlotte Clementine Soames [born 17 July, 1954], scion of that landed gentry family, daughter of the life peer, the late Baron Soames, GCMG, GCVO, CH, CBE, PC (1920-87), and a granddaughter maternally of the Rt Hon Sir Winston Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, DL, FRS, RA [1874-1965].

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Lady Lucy Pelham (nee Egerton) 1937-2026

 The Lady Lucy Helen Pelham, who died 1st August, 2026, aged 88, was a scion of the Dukes of Sutherland, sister of the 7th Duke.

She was born Lucy Helen Egerton, 5th December, 1937, the eldest child of Cyril Reginald Egerton (1905-1992), and his wife the former Mary Campbell (who died 23 Sept, 1949).

Her father was a grandson of the 3rd Earl of Ellesmere (1847-1914). The 1st Earl of Ellesmere was a younger son of the 1st Duke of Sutherland, and Lucy's only brother, Francis Ronald Egerton (born 18 February 1940) succeeded to the Sutherland dukedom, on the death of his cousin, the 6th Duke, 21 September, 2000.

Lucy was raised to the rank of a duke's daughter, becoming Lady Lucy, in 2002.

She married 25 October, 1958, Michael Alan Pelham, JP (1926-2022), scion of the Earls of Yarborough, but not in remainder to the title, son of Harry Alan Pelham (1891-1971), y his wife the former Doris Millicent Taunton (1895-1985), by whom she had issue, a son Charles Peregrine Pelham (born 27 July, 1959), and a daughter, Laura Mary Pelham (born 15 May, 1962).

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FitzRoy/Kelly engagement

 The engagement was announced 6 August, 2026, between the Hon Humphrey John FitzRoy Newdegate (born 23 November, 1995), son and heir of the 4th Viscount Daventry (born 27 July, 1960), of Arbury, Warwickshire, and Viscountess Daventry (nee Georgia Lodge, born 1964), & Arabella Elizabeth A. Kelly (born 1996), daughter of Christopher B. Kelly, of Henley Oxfordshire, and Mrs Melanie C.A. Hampton (born 1959, nee Miller), of Hungerford, Berkshire.

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