His fairy-tale wedding could have been scripted by his grandfather Roald Dahl, but Ned Donovan’s marriage to Princess Raiyah of Jordan had an unhappy ending.
I can disclose that Ned, who exchanged vows with the youngest daughter of the late King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan in 2020, has now divorced.
And, in a tale of the unexpected of which celebrated author Dahl would no doubt be proud, Ned has wasted no time in getting married again – to an American TikToker.
Ned, 32, a journalist-turned-US police officer, wed Megan Tomlin last week at St Margaret’s Church in Babington, Somerset, in front of guests including his half-sister, the model and writer Sophie Dahl, and his godfather, Sir Nicholas Coleridge, chairman of The King’s Foundation.
Ned and Megan live in Charleston in her native US. ‘We’re all happy for him,’ a friend tells me. ‘He’s had a tough time.’
The year after his first wedding, which took place during a Covid lockdown with almost no one else present, Ned’s beloved father died. City figure Patrick Donovan had suffered from cancer. He was the second husband of Tessa Dahl, Ned’s mother.
In 2024, Ned was injured after apprehending a pickpocket in the shadow of the Palace of Westminster.
Even though he stopped the thief, he was set upon by other gang members. And instead of coming to his aid, passers-by filmed the incident.
Ned, 32, a journalist-turned-US police officer, wed Megan Tomlin last week at St Margaret’s Church in Babington, Somerset
Guests included Ned’s half-sister, the model and writer Sophie Dahl
Ned, who exchanged vows with Princess Raiyah, the youngest daughter of the late King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan in 2020, has now divorced
‘Walking across Westminster Bridge, I saw a man in the act of pickpocketing a female tourist,’ he said.
‘I grabbed him and stopped him before he could disappear. Unfortunately, several of his accomplices appeared and began to punch me, kick me and choke me to get me to release their friend, which I wasn’t going to let happen.
‘One up-and-coming black eye, bloody nose, marks on the neck, a scratched eye socket and cuts from him biting my wrist later, I’m recovering and very grateful to the Metropolitan Police and the NHS for all their help and hard work.’
Ned, who was a Special Constable at the time, added: ‘Sadly, dozens stood around watching and filming, but no one attempted to help.’
Let’s hope for a much happier ending to this new chapter.
Never let it be said that Dame Prue Leith doesn’t keep up with the times. The former Great British Bake Off judge wants a household robot.
‘I fancy getting one of those humanoids to do the washing-up,’ she declares at The Oldie magazine’s literary lunch in Belfast.
‘True, they are creepy, but I quite fancy getting one because my husband complains bitterly about the way I throw everything in the dishwasher. And then I try not to, but I get in a rage.’
Dame Prue, 86, adds: ‘I know people are scared of them, but they were once scared of electric lights and driverless cars.’
Dame Prue Leith has revealed she would love a household robot
Sir Paul McCartney’s poignant last words to wife Linda in 1998 were: ‘You’re up on your beautiful Appaloosa stallion. It’s a fine spring day. We’re riding through the woods. The bluebells are all out and the sky is clear-blue.’
Nearly 30 years on, they haven’t been forgotten. For daughter Stella McCartney is planning to sell handbags and clothes in honour of her late mother’s beloved horse breed.
The designer, 54, has applied to the Intellectual Property Office to trademark the word ‘Appaloosa’.
It asks for legal protection to sell bags – including purses, reusable shoppers and nappy changing bags – and seeks sole rights to sell clothing using the word.
He’s thwarted nuclear attacks in spy thriller Mission: Impossible and will return next month as a GCHQ high-up in Channel 4’s The Undeclared War. And it seems espionage runs in Simon Pegg’s blood.
‘I had two uncles that worked at GCHQ, both called Tony; they could never tell me what they did,’ Pegg, 56, who grew up a ten-minute drive from the British intelligence agency in Gloucestershire, revealed at a BFI Southbank screening. ‘My brother did the electrics there.’
Why Charlize is a runway success
Charlize Theron is set to thrill audiences as Calypso, the mythical nymph who trapped Odysseus on her island, in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.
But the Oscar-winner’s performance as she arrived for the after-party at the film’s London premiere is surely just as captivating.
Charlize, 50, left, strutted down the Mayfair street as if it was a runway at a fashion show.
Her red velvet Givenchy dress, designed by the fashion house’s creative director Sarah Burton, who made the Princess of Wales’s bridal gown, was certainly fit for the catwalk. ‘You always bet on red,’ Charlize says. Quite.
Charlize Theron is set to thrill audiences as Calypso, the mythical nymph who trapped Odysseus on her island, in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey
Anthea Turner, who has put off her wedding to socialite Mark Armstrong four times, is leaving her friend and fellow TV presenter Lizzie Cundy frustrated.
‘I was promised I would be chief bridesmaid and I hope that’s not a promise she doesn’t deliver on,’ says Lizzie, 58.
‘If Anthea gets married, I promise I won’t wear white, I’ll be on my best behaviour and I’ll do a reading as well. I’ll even be the vicar… just do it Anthea!’
Well, if that doesn’t convince her pal, I don’t know what will.
