Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson and multi-millionaire art collector Charles Saatchi confirmed on Monday they were getting divorced, a month after a newspaper published photographs of him with his hands around her throat outside a London restaurant.
The photos showed Lawson, hugely popular in Britain for her television cooking shows, in tears and brought Saatchi, a former advertising tycoon, a police caution for assault. Though he tried to play down the incident as a “playful tiff”.
Lawson, 53, the daughter of former British finance minister Nigel Lawson, said nothing publicly after the row. However, groups campaigning against domestic abuse and violence against women complained over the lack of action taken against Saatchi.
A statement from Lawson’s publicist confirmed on behalf of the couple that they were getting a divorce, adding that “neither party will be making any financial claims against the other”.
Lawson, nicknamed the “domestic goddess” after one of her cookery books, married Saatchi in 2003 after her first husband, journalist John Diamond, died of throat cancer. She has two teenage children, Cosi and Bruno, from her first marriage.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 17th, 2013.
Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.