EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Kate Moss’s drink problem – the water supply from her private well branded ‘unsafe’

She’s captivated successive generations in a manner unmatched by any of her fellow models, so much so that even now, at 51, she ignites fascination in what she decides to wear – or opts to smoke or drink.

But would even Kate Moss’s most ardent admirers want to move in next to her in the Oxfordshire village where she’s spent much of her time since selling her north London mansion for £11.5million in 2021?

The question’s prompted by an acute and noxious hazard bubbling under the surface – not that there’s any sign of that at the ten-bedroom house where Kate luxuriates in what she calls her ‘favourite bathroom in the world’, a high-ceilinged, hand-wallpapered wonder, beautifully designed by Drummonds, a London company favoured by the global rich.

But it seems that the stuff gurgling up from the village’s water supply is less exquisite. 

In a letter displayed on the local council’s website, one of Kate’s fellow villagers explains that this comes from a well ‘which is part of an old system’.

That might sound idyllic. It isn’t. ‘The water is non-potable,’ adds the local, referring to water which is unsafe for human consumption. 

‘This has been confirmed by [the] council and advised to all residents in writing.’

Anyone ignoring the warning ‘would be drinking water with dangerous levels of bacteria’.

That’s not all. The village’s waste water is discharged to a ‘withy bed’ – boggy land thick with willows. Again, it sounds marvellous: an organic, age-old system. 

Alas, writes the local, the Environment Agency has stated that ‘the withy bed is no longer fit for purpose’, having been ‘overwhelmed by the sheer volume of surface water and foul water currently discharging into it from the village properties’.

Thames Water confirms the seemingly extraordinary fact that it does not supply the village, while the Environment Agency agrees that the ‘withy bed’ cannot cope.

Is Kate destined to be forever bedevilled in the backwaters of rural England? 

Back in 2005, when she was living with drug-addicted rocker Pete Doherty, she flooded the Gloucestershire cottage she was renting from baronet Sir Rowland Whitehead. 

Sir Rowland also found shattered china, burnt-out lamp shades, soiled armchairs and cigarette-stained work surfaces when he inspected the property.

No chance of a repeat: these days, of course, Kate lets off steam by making jam and practising yoga.

A spokesman for the council tells me an investigation is under way and it is ‘working with residents on this complex and sensitive matter’.

Chef Gizzi turns her nose up at fat jabs that ‘leave people in a dark place’ 

While some celebrated chefs have confessed to slimming down using ‘fat jabs’ – Heston Blumenthal and Rosemary Shrager among them – Gizzi Erskine refuses to buy into the craze.

The 46-year-old daughter of the late 2nd Baron Erskine of Rerrick, who shot to fame fronting Channel 4’s Cook Yourself Thin and writing the bestselling book Skinny Weeks & Weekend Feasts, has warned against injections such as Ozempic that are leaving ‘lots of skinny people in a dark place’ and fuelling eating disorders among her friends. 

‘Wouldn’t it be magic to live in a world where ‘skinny’ wasn’t the fashion,’ she says.

‘But we also have to accept that a lot of people struggle with unhealthy weight challenges. 

‘I don’t think it should be as accessible as it is. I know lots of skinny people on it and lots are in a dark place and it has exacerbated deep-rooted eating disorders.’

Gizzi has been candid about her own weight battles, once admitting she wept when none of the designer gowns sent for her to wear to the GQ Awards would fit.

‘Mick was a cad’: star who had threesome with Marianne 

Soul legend P.P. Arnold, who enjoyed a threesome with Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithfull when she was 18 in Swinging London, is not impressed that the Rolling Stones star has continued seducing women into old age.

‘The [number of] women he’s had, it’s quite gross when you think about it,’ the American singer, 78, tells me at Celebrating Marianne: Exploring The Myth And The Music Of A British icon, at Iconic Images gallery in St James’s, London. 

‘But he’s a man, he can get away with it.’ Sir Mick, 82, has a son, Deveraux, eight, with his girlfriend Melanie Hamrick.

‘Mick was a bit of a cad, as everyone knows,’ Arnold reflects. ‘I wouldn’t say he ever strung me along. He helped me.

‘It was through Mick I became a solo artist. But then Marianne came along. In the end, we both got dumped.’

The smart set’s talking about… Good news at last for the Getty clan with baby due 

The Getty clan is celebrating some much-needed good news following the divorces of not one but two prominent scions, Nats and Ivy, in as many years.

I can reveal London art gallery founder Isabel Getty, 31, is expecting her first child with her British boyfriend, the financier Faris McKinnon, 40.

During a recent holiday in Switzerland, Izzy, as she’s known to chums, shared a photo online of her growing bump, writing, ‘Swiss Days with My Boy’ – and a snap of them as she cradles her tummy.

Daughter of businessman Christopher Getty and film producer Pia Miller Getty, Isabel is the great-granddaughter of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty – once the world’s richest man, with a fortune estimated at $6billion.

A former Tatler cover star, she attended Harrodian School in west London and runs The Graduate Gallery in Fitzrovia. She’s also the lead singer of rock band Jean Marlow.

(Very) modern manners 

The Duchess of Sussex’s friend Jameela Jamil has a curious reason for not marrying her boyfriend, Grammy-winning musician James Blake.

The actress, 39, who recently moved back to London with Blake, 36, after nearly a decade together in Los Angeles, explains: ‘James and I have built this superstition via watching what’s happened to a lot of our friends, which is that almost as soon as they get married, a sexy ex comes back, someone suddenly turns up at work who’s like everything they’ve ever wanted.

‘I just think it’s tempting the universe.’

£800,000 profit gives Milburn a reason to smile 

In his youth, he was an earnest, bearded supporter of CND earning £20 a week in what’s been described as a ‘Marxist bookshop’, Days Of Hope, fondly known by locals as ‘Haze Of Dope’.

But Alan Milburn, Health Secretary for four years under Tony Blair, sees things far more clearly these days – especially the bottom line. 

Accounts just filed at Companies House by his company, A.M. Strategy Ltd, show it made a profit of nearly £800,000 last year – its best performance since 2020. 

He now has £4.66 million earnings held in the company.

Milburn, 67, recently appointed ‘lead non-executive director’ at the Department of Health, stood down as an MP in 2010, since when he’s got his fingers into plenty of pies. 

These include accounting giant PwC and private equity firm Bridgepoint Capital, which recently acquired a majority stake in MyDentist – the biggest chain providing NHS services. 

So it’s gold fillings for Milburn from now on, I trust.

Why it is definitely Top Hats off to pregnant dancer Lucy 

Ginger Rogers’ feet bled from the effort she put into dancing opposite Fred Astaire in the classic 1935 film Top Hat.

Remarkably, Lucy St. Louis has, I can reveal, been performing the same role on stage eight times a week at the Chichester Festival Theatre while expecting her first child with her husband, choreographer Ben Clare.

The London-born actress, 32, is five months’ pregnant. ‘I’ve been keeping a beautiful little secret,’ she confirms. 

‘I have so much joy in my heart finally getting to announce that I am going to be a mummy. 

‘This has been one of the most challenging yet rewarding experiences of my life to date.’

Minnie leads Emily astray 

Even off-camera, Minnie Driver can’t resist a little drama.

While filming Emily In Paris this summer with Lily Collins, the 55-year-old, who joins series five as Emily’s mother, landed herself in hot water after leading co-star Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu astray.

Philippine, 62, who plays Emily’s chic boss Sylvie, was persuaded to sneak to the beach between takes. 

‘Philippine is a spirit like no other,’ Minnie says, sharing a snap of their seaside escapade. 

‘She protected her hair because she is professional and gorgeous – and I got in trouble.’

Suranne Jones has confessed to a very unorthodox way of winding down after a long day.

‘I’ve been known to have a Sunday roast in the bath,’ the Hostage star admits. 

‘Delivered by my husband. He would happily go, “Do you want it in the bath?” And I’d be like, yeah, I do!’

The actress, 46, who’s married to scriptwriter Laurence Akers, often rises at 5am for work. 

She adds: ‘By 8pm I’m straight in the bath, then bed. I’ve got everything lined up because I need the bath as part of my sleep routine, like a massive baby. 

‘I’ll put a bit of food at the side of the bath and do it all in one go.’

She says she often uses a bowl for her bathtime roast ‘because I like a lot of gravy’.