Elizabeth Hurley is happy to be back in England to film The Royals. Photo / Frank W. Ockenfels 3/E!
Meeting a celebrity is often surprising. They're almost always shorter than expected and female actresses usually look more girl-next-door than jaw-dropping screen siren.
Not Elizabeth Hurley. Standing in a suite at the Lowell Hotel, in Manhattan's posh upper east side, the British actress and model, who goes by "Liz", can only be described as a knockout. Dressed in a striking fuchsia top, her thick hair falling in romantic tresses about her bare shoulders, Hurley, who turned 50 in June, is positively radiant. "I'm very happy," she professes in that instantly recognisable deep, husky voice. "I have a nice life."
She does indeed. Two decades after signing a lucrative contract with Estee Lauder at age 29, Hurley remains a loyal ambassador for the brand and a spokeswoman for the company's Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign.
That affiliation, the launch of her swimwear label in 2005, plus an acting career spanning almost 30 years, has put her estimated net worth at $35 million. Not bad for a gal whose film choices have not been, let's be honest, hugely memorable and who for years was referred to as "Hugh Grant's ex-girlfriend".
But, while she may not have won any major plaudits for her film roles, Hurley has always been popular and if her recent work is anything to go by, she is now attracting a new generation of fans. After an eight-year hiatus from movies to raise her son Damian, now 13, Hurley recently returned to the screen with a guest appearance on the popular teen television drama Gossip Girl.
Now she has scored a leading role in a new show creators hope will fill the hole left by that show's absence: The Royals, the first scripted drama from US entertainment channel E!, best known for Keeping up with the Kardashians. In New Zealand, The Royals will be available to view on neontv.co.nz from next Friday.
Set in contemporary London, The Royals is a sexy, modern-day soap about a fictional British royal family (although there are some uncanny resemblances to real-life princesses Beatrice and Eugenie in the cast.) Amid a barrage of blackmailing, backstabbing, bed-hopping and booze, Hurley plays Queen Helena, the controlling, naughty but nice matriarch trying to instil order in the monarchy.
"The jury is still out whether she is a hero or a villain," she says. Adding even more spice to the script is Dynasty actress Joan Collins as the Queen Mother.
"I've been offered a lot of television over the years but with American television, if you're lucky enough to be wanted for a pilot, you sign for seven years," Hurley explains. "For me, it was always too much of a commitment."
The Royals "came out of the blue", she says. "I was on holiday with my son in the Caribbean. My agent called and said, 'There's something great coming out. It's about the royal family, fictitious, and they want you to be the queen'.
"I was like, 'Hello, sounds good to me'. Then I read the script and, of course, loved it."
Filming takes place in London, which means Hurley can stay close to her son and their 13-bedroom, $13.3 million country home in Herefordshire, which she bought a few years ago with then-fiance, Aussie cricketer Shane Warne.
The show hasn't received the most positive reviews in the US, but it has been pulling in two million viewers a week on average and has been renewed for a second season. Hurley, who strips down to sexy black lingerie in the opening episode, says she isn't going anywhere.
"My dream would be that The Royals keeps running," she says. "I'd love it. It's a great job. My son loves it. My family loves it. Right now I couldn't be happier doing it."
The timing, of course, may be perfect. Much of the western world is fixated on the British royal family, particularly the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
"I think America has always been fascinated with our monarchy," says Hurley. "Princess Diana was loved and adored throughout the United States. It's certainly true that William and Kate fever is at an all-time high."
For what it's worth, Hurley is a fan of the royal family. "For me, they are the biggest show business family in the world. That's what we see. We don't see their private lives. We don't go behind closed doors. I'm glad about that. We just see them when they're in their roles, which we've assigned to them. I think they do it fantastically."
She has never met the Queen but as an ambassador for The Prince's Trust she has met Prince Charles several times and describes him as "fabulous".
"I love him. He's very popular. He's very interesting, very clever, very amusing, very charming and great at his job. The role he plays is brilliant. I have no idea if that's what he's like in real life."
Hurley says The Royals is really about the intrigue and obsession society has with the private lives of public figures.
"We go behind closed doors and we fantasise and fictionalise what we think could be happening behind a modern royal family's closed doors. It would be exciting if that's what happens."
The parallels with the actress' life are not lost on her. If there's anyone armed to take on the role of a woman whose private life is scrutinised by the tabloids it's Hurley, whose biography at times reads like the script for a television drama.
She was a struggling actress when she met British actor and romantic comedy favourite Hugh Grant in 1987. The two were together for 13 years, during which Hurley accompanied him to the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral in what became known as that dress - a black Versace number held together with several oversized safety pins.
She was again in the headlines when, in 1995, Grant gained international notoriety for soliciting the services of a prostitute named Divine Brown. Hurley stood by him until their split in 2000. She and Grant are still close. Grant is godfather to Damian and Hurley recently tweeted a photograph of herself with the actor, calling him her "best friend of 27 years".
Damian is the son of US entertainment and property tycoon Steve Bing, who caddishly demanded a DNA test when Hurley announced he was his. Before Warne there was a four-year marriage to businessman Arun Nayar, which ended in 2010.
Despite the constant media attention - and the red-carpet events that come with her profession - Hurley says she doesn't follow a Hollywood exercise or beauty regime.
"I do a bit of stretching, but that's it," she says matter-of-factly. "I try to keep active. I don't really do much exercise but when I'm home in the country I walk the dogs for an hour, fast walking every day. I've joined a very nice women only health club in London called Grace Belgravia. There's Pilates and yoga classes."
Trailer: The Royals
She eats healthily, avoiding junk food and processed food. "I eat normal food, food I've eaten all of my life: lamb chops, mashed potatoes, broccoli. It would be a real exception if I eat anything from a package or tin. I don't really do that. You know, we just eat meat, vegetables, salad, fruit. I make cakes. I make puddings. We have puddings for dessert. I've never bought one."
Through Estee Lauder, she admits she is lucky to have had "an arsenal of phenomenal products" at her fingertips - although she says her regime is quick as she's always short on time. "Estee Lauder said you should be able to get ready in five minutes unless it's a big event. I probably don't take more than five minutes to get ready. I've used their serums, their creams, their eye creams for a long time. It is kind of fabulous."
She does spend time cultivating her beachwear brand, which she established in 2005 and some of the beaded kaftans and bikinis from Elizabeth Hurley Beach feature in The Royals.
Her business thriving and a career once again flourishing, it's easy to see where Hurley's natural glow comes from. She says she couldn't be more thrilled to be back on set.
"It was beyond all expectations that I'd be lucky enough to act again. Then lucky enough to get a great part in a great show was a big penny from heaven," she says.
"To be honest, I really love it. It's a funny thing: we've all got comfort zones. Being on set is me at my most relaxed and comfortable. I love going to work every day. I feel like I'm at home."
The Royals debuts on neontv.co.nz next Friday.
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