Damiani/Knatchbull engagement

 The engagement has been announced  between Giovanni (Gionzy) Damiani, and Daisy Isadora Louise Knatchbull (born 5 October, 1992), scion of the Earls Mountbatten of Burma, daughter of the Hon Philip Wyndham Ashley Knatchbull (born 2 December, 1961), and his first wife the former Atalanta Cowen (born 20 June, 1962).

Daisy is a granddaughter of the 7th Baron Brabourne (1924-2005), and Patricia, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma (1924-2017).

The Damiani family are an established Italian jewellry business strongly linked to tradition and the passion for goldsmith art. They have designed and manufactured precious and unique jewels for three generations.

Gionzy Damiani is a music professional known for his work in publishing, production and song writing, linked to the Mutineer Music Group in London. 

Daisy Knatchbull is a fashion designer , founder of Knatchbull, the first female only tailor on London's Savile Row.

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William Patrick Stirling Damerell 1949-2026

 William Patrick Stirling Damerell died 5 April, 2026. 

He was born in Wiltshire in April, 1949, son of D.V. Damerell, of Stodham Park, Liss, Hampshire; and married at Chichester, Sussex, 2 July, 1977, the Lady Mary Barbara Carnegie (born 10 February, 1953), second daughter of the 13th Earl of Northesk (1926-1994), and his wife the former Jean Margaret MacRae (1927-1989), a granddaughter maternally of the 4th Marquess of Bristol (1863-1951), by whom he had issue, three sons, Charles Carnegie S. Damerell (born 1980), Thomas Edward Carnegie Damerell (born 1982), and Robert William Carnegie Damerell (born 1985).

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Lady Anastasia Compton engaged to Christian Rena

The engagement was announced 11 April, 2026, between Christian Henry M. Rena (born 2002), younger son of Nicholas J.D. Rena (born Westminster, 1963), and his wife the former Rachel F. Broughton (born 1964), and the Lady Anastasia Henrietta Grace Compton (born 26 March, 2002), eldest daughter of Daniel Bingham Compton, styled Earl Compton (born 16 January, 1973), and his former wife the former Elizabeth Lucy Cardozo (now Mrs Capel Irwin, wife of Capel Robert Powell Irwin, born 1967), descended from the Brotherton Ratcliffe landed gentry family.

Lady Anastasia is a granddaughter of the 7th Marquess of Northampton.

Christian Rena has an aristocratic ancestry, descending from the Stuart Black, Pereira, and Lane Fox landed families.

George Sackville Frederick Lane Fox (1838-1918) = Annette Weld-Blundell > Helen Mary Lane Fox (1881-1957) = Maj Gen Sir Cecil Edward Pereira, KCB, CB, CMG (1869-1942) > Margaret Helen Pereira (1905-82) = Ian Hervey Stuart Black (1908-1986) > Sarah Mary Stuart Black (b 1941) = Oliver Rena (1937-2021) > Nicholas Rena (b 1963)

Christian's aunt, Francesca Rena (born 1969) married in 1993, the Hon (David) Patrick Cairns (born 27 May, 1967), second son of the 6th Earl Cairns.

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Dunn/Scott-Bowden engagement

The engagement was announced 11 April, 2026, between George P. Dunn, son of Mr Frank Dunn and Mrs Angie Boyle of London, & Matilda Nancy Scott-Bowden (born 26 January, 1997), daughter of Major James Russell Scott-Bowden (born 1958), of Alderley, Gloucestershire, and his wife the former Nicola Jane Shepherd (born 1963).

Matilda is a great-granddaughter of Sir Francis Caradoc Rose Price, 5th Baronet (1880-1949)

Sir Francis Rose Price Bt (1880-1949) > Helen Price 1920-2010 > Maj. James Scott-Bowden (b 1958) > Matilda (b 1997)

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The Baron Beecham, DL 1944-2026

 The Baron Beecham, DL, life peer, Labour party politician, died 9 April, 2026. He was 81.

Jeremy Hugh Beecham was born 14 November, 1944. He was a Labour politician and a senior figure in  local government. He was leader of Newcastle City Council and the first Chairman of the Local Government Association. He was the elected Chairman of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party (October 2005 – September 2006).

Beecham was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne, and University College, Oxford (1962–1965), where he obtained a first class honours degree in law. He became a solicitor. He joined the Labour Party in 1959, and was elected a councillor for Benwell, Newcastle, in the Newcastle City Council elections of 11 May 1967. He stood for Parliament without success in Tynemouth in 1970. He chaired the Social Services Committee on the council from 1973 to 1977 and was Leader of Newcastle from 1977 to 1994, chairing the Finance Committee from 1979 to 1984. In 1991, Beecham became Chairman of the Association of Metropolitan Authorities (AMA). When the AMA merged with the Association of District Councils and the Association of County Councils on 1 April 1997 to form the Local Government Association, he became the first chairman of the LGA. He was the LGA vice-chairman and continued to chair the LGA Labour Group. He was the President of the British Urban Regeneration Association. Beecham was a member of many boards and committees in Newcastle and North East England, and in advising government. Beecham was a member of the Labour Party National Executive Committee from 1998 and was its chairman in 2005-2006. 

He was appointed Knight Bachelor in June, 1994. 

Beecham was made a Freeman of the city of Newcastle in 1995. He was Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Tyne and Wear and Benwell and Scotswood on the City Council. He has been a council member at charity Common Purpose since 1989. He was Jewish, and a board member of the New Israel Fund in the UK.

He was raised to the peerage for life in 2010 as Baron Beecham, of Benwell and Newcastle upon Tyne in the County of Tyne and Wear. He was was introduced in the House of Lords on 28 July 2010. He sat on the Labour benches until his retirement in 2021.

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Michael Owen Lidwell 1941-2026

 Michael Owen Lidwell died 25 March, 2026, aged 84.

He was born 24 December, 1941, the eldest son of Owen Millwood Lidwell, MA, D.Phil, BSc (1914-2010), and his wife the former Daphne Jenefer Mary Fursdon (1918-2011), scion of the Fursdon of Fursdon landed gentry family, and married in 1972, (Agnes) Naomi Allison (born 1945), daughter of Alexander Bernard Allison (1912-1999), and his wife the former Agnes Margaret Houghton (1905-2001), by whom he had issue, a son, Simon Neil (born 1973), and three daughters, Aline (born 1976), Hannah (born 1979), and Rebekah (born 1984).

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Eleanor Paton Dreyer (née Copland) 1941-2026

Eleanor Paton Dreyer (née Copland), died 14 March, 2026, aged 84.

She was born in 1941, a daughter of Leslie Copland, of Westmount, Quebec, and married 4 June, 1966, Martin Raymond Dreyer (born 2 November, 1942), scion of that landed gentry family, elder son of Lieutenant-Commander Raymond Garnier Dreyer, MBE, RN (1919-2006), and his wife the former Molly Eileen Travers-Drapes (1920-2012). She leaves issue, two sons, Charles William G. Dreyer, and (Jonathan) Mark A. Dreyer.

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Ian Alexander-Sinclair 1946-2026

Ian Alexander-Sinclair, who died 22 March, 2026, aged 79, was a scion of that landed gentry family.

He was born in 1946, son of Lieutenant-Commander Roderick Ian Alexander-Sinclair, RN (1911-1985), and his wife the former Margaret Hamilton-Campbell (1915-1994), and married 1972, Patricia J. Fairhead (born 1947), daughter of Alan Tyrrell Fairhead, by his wife the former Joyce Mona Varney, by whom he had issue, two sons, Charles Boyd Alexander-Sinclair (born 1978), and Samuel John P. Alexander-Sinclair (born circa 1981).

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Vivienne Valerie Mary Bolton (born 2026)

Carla Bolton (nee Devereux), wife of Frederic William S. Bolton [born 1990], gave birth to a daughter, Vivienne Valerie Mary, 28 March, 2026.

Carla is a daughter of William Devereux, of Walshetown, Wexford, Ireland, and his wife Siobhan.

Frederic is a son of James William Bolton [born 15 June, 1957], of Clapton-on-the-Hill, Gloucestershire, descended from the Barwick baronets, and his wife the former Karin Beck-Andersen [born 1957].

Sir John Barwick, 1st Baronet > George Short Barwick > Valerie Margaret Barwick > James Bolton > Frederic Bolton > Vivienne Bolton

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Riddell-Webster/Clamp engagement

 The engagement was announced 10 April, 2026, between Sam John Riddell-Webster (born September, 1997), son of Major-General Michael Lawrence Riddell-Webster, CBE, DSO (born December, 1960), of Perthshire, former Governor of Edinburgh Castle, head of that landed gentry family, and his wife Sarah Mariah Clothilde Findlay (born September, 1962), and Miranda Olivia Clamp (born November, 1997), daughter of Adrian Paul Clamp (born 29 April, 1966), of London and Edinburgh, and his wife the former Amanda Louisa Cayuela de la Rosa (born 30 June, 1968).

Sam Riddell-Webster is a great-great grandson of Brig-Gen Sir Frederick Charlton Meyrick, 2nd Baronet (1862-1932), and descended from Sir Alexander Sprot, 1st Baronet (1853-1929).

Sir Alexander Sprot, Bt > Harriet Sprot > John Riddell-Webster > Michael Riddell-Webster > Sam Riddell-Webster

Sir Frederick Meyrick, Bt > Rachel Meyrick > Ruth Lithgow > Michael Riddell-Webster > Sam Riddell-Webster

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Mariette Helena, Baroness Saye and Sele 1936-2026

  Mariette Helena, Baroness Saye and Sele, who who died 6 April, 2026, aged 90, was the widow of the 21st Baron Saye and Sele, and was for many years chatelaine of the family seat, Broughton Castle.

She was born in January, 1936, daughter of Major-General Sir Guy Salisbury-Jones, GCVO, CMG, CBE, MC (1896-1985), and his wife the former Hilda Violet Helena de Bunsen (1900-1995), scion of the de Bunsen baronets; and married at St Margaret's, Westminster, 4 December, 1958, the Hon Nathaniel Thomas Allen Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (born 22 September, 1920 in a grace and favour apartment in the House of Lords). Her husband discarded his triple-barrelled surname (encapsulating various family cognomens), shortening it to Fiennes by deed poll in 1965. He succeeded his father in the peerage, 21 October, 1968.

Lord Saye’s forebears could be traced back to the Norman Conquest. An ancestor, Geoffrey de Say, was one of 25 barons who signed the Magna Carta and was charged with its implementation. Another ancestor, James Fiennes, fought at Agincourt and befriended the young Henry VI, serving as chamberlain of his household; he was elevated to the peerage as the 1st Baron Saye and Sele in 1447, but his wealth and influence made him a target of the Kentish rebels under Jack Cade in 1450 when he was imprisoned and beheaded.

The 2nd Lord Saye and Sele married a descendant of William of Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester. As a result the family inherited a fortified manor house in Oxfordshire, for which in 1406 Sir Thomas Wykeham, William’s great nephew, had obtained a licence to “crenellate and embattle”. So emerged Broughton Castle, which Richard Fiennes, the 6th Lord Saye and Sele embellished into what is still essentially the Elizabethan mansion that stands today.

The family played a significant role in the English Civil War. The 8th baron became a leader of the Parliamentarian opposition to Charles I, alongside John Pym. In 1642 his four sons all fought against the royalists at Edgehill, the first major battle of the war, just seven miles from Broughton Castle. His second son, Nathaniel Fiennes, MP for Banbury, was notable for his calls for the abolition of the episcopacy. As an officer in the parliamentary army he led the defence of Bristol against Prince Rupert in 1643. When the city surrendered he was arrested, sentenced to death and later pardoned. Nathaniel remained close to Oliver Cromwell and attended his death bed. At the Restoration he and his father were pardoned for their parliamentary sympathies.

When her husband succeeded to the ancient barony of Saye and Sele in 1968 as the 21st incumbent, he also inherited the moated Broughton Castle, set in an 1,800-acre estate, near Banbury in Oxfordshire. Described by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, a historian, as “the finest and most complete medieval house in the county”, the actual building, which had been in his family for about 600 years, had deteriorated badly. After his father had restored the roof in 1957, the new lord and his wife Mariette overhauled the stonework and windows, and carried out extensive redecoration. He was helped by his training as a chartered surveyor and land agent.

In the early Eighties she and her husband embarked on the main structure, with a £1 million, 12-year programme, supported by English Heritage and completed in 1994. Crumbling stonework, rotting window lead and timbers riddled with deathwatch beetles were all replaced. Broughton provided the backdrop to scenes in [Shakespeare in Love,] Wolf Hall and The Crown, and the discovery on the estate of one of the largest Roman villas in Britain prompted a visit by Channel 4’s Time Team in 2021.

The 21st Baron Saye and Sele lived to a great age and died 20 January, 2024, aged 103.

Lady Saye and Sele leaves issue, two sons, Martin, the 22nd Baron Saye and Sele (born 27 February, 1961), the Hon William Fiennes (born 7 Aug, 1970), and one daughter, the Hon Susannah (born 27 Feb, 1961 twin with her brother). She was predeceased by two sons, the Hon Richard (1959-2001), and the Hon Thomas (1965-68).

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Christopher Charles Jervis Johnson-Ferguson 1933-2026

 Christopher Charles Jervis Johnson-Ferguson, who died 29 March, 2026, aged 92, was a scion of the baronets of that name. 

He was born 14 April, 1933, second son of Sir Neil Edward Johnson-Ferguson, 3rd Baronet (1905-1992), and his wife the former Sheila Marian Jervis (who died in 1985); and married 18 April, 1963, Sarah Loraine (Sally) Sherston-Baker (born 5 November, 1940), second daughter of Sur Humphrey Dodington Benedict Sherston-Baker, 6th Baronet (1907-1990), and his wife the former Margaret Alice Binns (who died 1994), by whom he had issue, a son, Charles (born 6 Dec, 1972), and three daughters, Victoria (born 17 Feb, 1965), Katharine (born 1966), and Lucy (born 30 June, 1974).

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Hon Margaret Ross van Koetsveld 1934-2026

 The Hon Margaret Ross van Koetsveld (née Geddes), died 3 April, 2026, aged 91.

She was a scion of the Barons Geddes, and a niece of the Hon Margaret Geddes (1913-1997), who married HRH Prince Ludwig of Hesse and the Rhine (1908-1968).

She was born 5 May, 1934, in San Francisco, daughter of the 2nd Baron Geddes, KBE (1907-1975), and his wife the former Enid Mary Butler (who died 28 January, 1999); and married 6 May, 1961,   (Ralph Emilius) Quintus van Koetsveld, son of Johan Emilius van Koetsveld, of Rotterdam, by whom she had three sons, Michael (born 16 March, 1963), Antony (born 20 July, 1964), and Christopher (born 11 Feb, 1969).

Her husband died in November last year aged 96.

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Slee/Crawfurd engagement

 The engagement was announced 8 April, 2026, between Rory William Slee (born 1995), elder son of William A. Slee (born 1963), of Woodtown, Devon, by his wife the former Jane L. Every (born 1965), and Georgina Olivia P. Crawfurd (born 11 November, 1996), daughter of Edward John Payne Crawfurd (born 23 August, 1955), of Paulerspury, Northamptonshire, descended maternally from the Peake landed gentry family, and his wife the former Amy Louise Villiers Smith (born 11 October, 1963), a descendant of the Earls of Clarendon and Barons Northbourne.

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Abel Smith/Siggers engagement

 The engagement was announced 8 April, 2026, between Thomas Patrick Abel Smith (born 1993), scion of that landed gentry family, son of the late (Bertram) Robin Abel Smith (1938-2009), and his wife the former Diana Marjorie Fielder Forsell, of Rotherby, Leicestershire, & Roberta M. Siggers, daughter of Mark James Siggers (born Jan 1955), of Warfield, Berkshire, and Mrs Siggers.

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Richard Alexander Charles Cobbe, CVO 1945-2026

 Richard Alexander Charles (Alec) Cobbe, CVO, of Newbridge House Co Dublin, and Hatchlands Park, Surrey, who died 31 March, 2026, aged 81, was a scion of that Irish landed gentry family.

Alec Cobbe was born in Dublin and studied medicine at Oxford University, where he won a prize for anatomical drawing. After a half year of clinical training in London, he relinquished his medical studies to practise as an artist. He also trained as a picture restorer at the Tate Gallery and the Courtauld Institute of Art. Between 1972 and 1981 Alec worked as a picture restorer successively at the Birmingham City Museum and Art Gallery and the Hamilton Kerr Institute of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, after which he commenced his own practice. As an artist and designer he specialised in the design of historic interiors and the reorganisation of picture hanging schemes for both public and private historic collections. His works have been the subject of several exhibitions, including at the Prince of Wales Drawing Schools in 1995, a major retrospective at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2013-14 and a show at Dublin Castle in 2014-15. Alec’s design archive has entered the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum. He has exhibited as an artist throughout his life in Paris, Dublin and London. He has also executed a large number of painted graphic designs for various clients including the Prince of Wales (later King Charles), who contributed a foreword to the Victoria and Albert Museum exhibition publication.

Some highlights of his design work include the design of the Clive Museum at Powis Castle, of the Mary Queen of Scots chambers at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the presentation of major rooms at Kenwood House and Somerset House, the Library in Lupton’s Tower, Eton College, the Sitwell Museum at Renishaw; interior design and picture hangs in numerous country houses, including Dublin Castle, Harewood House, Hatfield House, Hillsborough Castle, Knole and Petworth House.

He was born 9 January, 1945 the second son of Lieutenant Francis Charles Cobbe, RNVR (1913-1949), and his wife and cousin, the former Joan Mervyn Cobbe (1915-2005); and married 25 July, 1970, the Hon Isabel Anne Marie Henrietta Dillon (born 6 September, 1942), the eldest daughter of the 20th Viscount Dillon (1911-1979), and his wife the former Irène Marie France Merandon du Plessis (died 22 Apr, 2008), by whom he had issue, two sons, Thomas (born 26 March, 1973), and Henry (born 1975), and two daughters, Frances (born 9 May, 1971), and Rose (born 26 March, 1973, twin with brother Thomas).

His niece Elizabeth Cobbe is the Countess of Dalkeith, wife of the heir to the Duke of Buccleuch & Queensberry.

Alec Cobbe was appointed CVO in February, 2026.

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Vestey/Foster Moseley engagement

 The engagement was announced 4 April, 2026, between Richard George Archibald Vestey (born 17 December, 1997), scion of the Vestey baronets, third son of George Moubray William Vestey (born 17 September, 1964), of Great Thurlow, Suffolk, and his former wife Ms Rachel Philippa Osborne, of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, & Francesca Lily Foster Moseley (born 1999), youngest daughter of James Moseley, of Upper Oddington, Gloucestershire and his wife nee Quiggin.

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Cordelia Aprille Ames Florence De Groat (born 2026)

Lara Alexandra de Groat (nee Ouvaroff, born 1996), wife of Cameron J.M. De Groat, gave birth to a daughter Cordelia Aprille Ames Florence, 26 March, 2026.

Cameron is a son of Mr and Mrs M.J.M. Groat, of Wimborne, Dorset.

Lara is a daughter of Count Dominic William Ouvaroff (born December, 1966), of Wandsworth, London, and his wife the former Jennifer Baxendale.

The infant is descended from the Marquesses of Exeter:-

The 3rd Marquess of Exeter (1825-95) > Lord Francis Cecil (1851-89) > Violet Cecil (died 1953) > Aubretia Ames > Count Stephen Ouvaroff (1935-2017) > Count Dominic Ouvaroff (b 1966) > Lara Ouvaroff (b 1996) > Cordelia de Groat (b 2026)

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Hector George Lowe (born 2026)

Clementine Mary R. (Clemmie) Lowe (born 1991, née Francklin), wife of Frederick James (Fred) Lowe (born 1991), gave birth to a son, Hector George, 16 March, 2026, a brother for Harry Alexander, born 12 March, 2024.

Clementine Lowe is a daughter of William Alexander Mavourn Francklin (born 1958), scion of that landed gentry family, and his wife the former Celina Lucinda Palmer (born 15 May, 1961), scion of the Palmer baronets, daughter of Sir Geoffrey Christopher John Palmer, 12th Baronet (born 30 June, 1936).

Fred Lowe is a son of Rupert James Graham Lowe, MP for Great Yarmouth, and his wife the former Nicola Chapman, and is descended from the Baker baronets:-

Sir George Edward Dunstan Sherston Baker, 4th Baronet > Henrietta Baker > Michael Chapman > Nicola Chapman > Fred Lowe

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Inigo Basil John Agar (born 2026)

 India Sarah T. Agar (nee Clevely, born 1991), wife of Charles Christopher Edward Agar [born 29 July, 1989], scion of the Earls of Normanton, gave birth to a son, Inigo Basil John, 27 March, 2026, a brother for Bodie Giles Edward, who was born 15 March, 2024.

Charles Agar is a son of the Hon Mark Sidney Andrew Agar [born 2 Sept, 1948], of Hilton, Dorset, and his wife the former Arabella Clare Gilbey [born 14 July, 1953], scion of the Gilbey baronets.

India Agar is a daughter of Rupert Clevely, of River, West Sussex, and his wife the former Joanna Beatrice Taswell Greenwell [born 14 Jan, 1962], scion of the Greenwell baronets, descended from the 1st Bt.

Charles Agar is a grandson of the 5th Earl of Normanton [1910-67].

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