Elizabeth Hurley Weighs in on Rumor About Prince Harry's Virginity
Elizabeth Hurley responded to a rumor that she took Prince Harry's virginity. In his new memoir Spare, Harry claims that he lost his virginity to an unnamed older woman. There was speculation that this woman was the Austin Powers star, but Hurley denied this was the case.
In Spare, Harry reportedly wrote that he lost his virginity to "a beautiful older woman in the countryside." During a new interview with The Times' Michael Odell, Hurley, 57, denied it was her. "Not me. Not guilty. Ha," Hurley said. Odell implied that Hurley's response sounded like a joke. "No. Not me. Absolutely not," Hurley added, putting the matter to rest.
Although Harry did not name the mysterious woman, some speculated he was referring to Hurley because she owned a home in Gloucestershire in South West England, reports Insider. Members of the royal family, including King Charles III and Princess Anne, have owned homes in the rural area. If Hurley really had taken the prince's virginity, it would have been during or shortly after she ended her long-term relationship with Hugh Grant in 2000.
Prince Harry's memoir Spare will finally be released on Jan. 10. It was originally scheduled to hit stores in 2022, but was reportedly delayed because of Queen Elizabeth II's death in September. The book will include more details about Harry's life in the royal family, a topic also covered in the new Netflix documentary series Harry & Meghan. In that series, Harry is joined by his wife, Meghan Markle, as they talk about their decision to leave their royal obligations in 2020.
As for Hurley, her interview with The Times comes at the end of a difficult year for her. Back in March, her ex-boyfriend Shane Warne died. The former cricketer suffered a heart attack. He was just 52. Steve Bing, the father of Hurley's son Damian, died by suicide in 2020.
"Of the four great loves of my life two are dead – I always say to the other two, you'd better watch your backs," Hurley told The Times, via Yahoo! Life. "But yes, it was very hard and it still is very hard. Losing Shane was terrible. It's taken a long time to sink in. I honestly kept thinking he'd call and it would turn out to be some big Aussie joke."
Hurley starred in two Christmas movies released this year, Christmas in Paradise and Christmas in the Caribbean. Christmas in Paradise co-stars Kelsey Grammer and Billy Ray Cyrus and was released to theaters in November. Christmas in the Caribbean is available to rent or buy on digital platforms.