Hugh Grant's unpredictable love life - sex worker affair to marriage bombshell

18 February 2024 , 18:30

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Hugh Grant dubbed monogamous relationships 'unromantic' before he met his wife Anna Eberstein (Image: Getty Images)

Hugh Grant once said he didn't believe in marriage - but that was before he met his wife.

The 63-year-old British actor, who is presenting the BAFTA Awards 2024 tonight, made headlines during the '90s for his whirlwind romances and famous girlfriends. He finally settled down in his fifties and became a dad-of-five and smitten husband to television producer Anna Eberstein, 40.

Hugh, best known for his roles in Notting Hill, Love Actually and Wonka, didn't ever see himself settling down in a monogamous relationship - until he found himself 'lucky' in love. Here, we take a look back at his romance history...

Hugh and Anna married in 2018 and share three children together (AFP via Getty Images)

The actor dated Elizabeth Hurley for over a decade in the '90s (Getty Images)

The Golden Globe and BAFTA-winning actor married his wife Anna in a small ceremony in 2018, just months after welcoming their third child together. In an interview on US show Today, he gave an insight into their marital life at home. "It's really nice. I can't pretend it isn't. I should have done it before. I'm just lucky. I'm lucky," he said. "I've got a great wife. I love her."

Hugh also spoke about the struggles he and his wife face when trying to raise their children while travelling. He said: "It's unspeakable. Then you go through that moral torment of, 'Do I actually travel with them or do I make an excuse, so they have to go with their mum or a nanny?' I've done it because you feel so smug when you get to the other end - you've done your bit."

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It was a shock to the showbiz world to see the dad-of-five tie the knot, after he once called marriage 'unromantic'. In 2016, Hugh said: "Do I think humans are meant to be in a 40-year-long faithful relationship? No, no, no. Whoever said they were? I think there's something unromantic about marriage. You're closing yourself off."

Hugh and Anna also share a son, John, 11, and a daughter, nine, whose name is unknown. He is also father to daughter Tabitha, 12, and son Felix, 11, with ex-girlfriend Tinglan Hong. The Notting Hill actor welcomed three children back to back with two different women in the mid-2000s - first with Tinglan, then Anna, then Tinglan.

Hugh with former girlfriend Jemima Khan in 2007 (Getty Images)

He admitted to cheating on Liz in 1995 with a sex worker (Reuters)

The actor famously dated actress and model Elizabeth Hurley for 13 years before calling it quits in 2000. The duo made headlines in 1987 when they started dating, and again in 1995 when he cheated on her. Hugh was caught having an affair with a sex worker, which he later claimed was down to his lack of confidence as an actor.

"I was about to launch my first Hollywood film - my timing was impeccable. My problem was that was my first Hollywood film and I'd just been to see it," he explained in 2021 on Marc Maron's WTF podcast. "The film was about to come out a week or two after that, and I had a bad feeling about it. I went to see a screening. Everyone in it was brilliant, but I was so atrocious that I was not in a good frame of mind."

Hugh and Liz remain good friends and it was she who revealed his fifth child had been born. In 2018, Liz was asked in an interview whether or not she was surprised by the amount of children he's had. She said: "He had another one last week. He has five. He was over 50 when he spawned them all."

She said it's not a shock, adding: "No, he's an enchanting dad. Really, really sweet." Liz went on: "Having these kids has transformed him from a very miserable person into a fairly miserable person. It's improved him. He's gone up the scale." In between Liz and Anna, Hugh was also in a relationship with heiress Jemima Khan, which ended in 2012.

Nia Dalton