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In the 1990s, Greta Sacchi, renowned for her role as Miss Marple, found herself at the center of a family conflict due to her choice of romantic partner. Sacchi, who captivated audiences as Tuppence Beresford in the 2006 episode “By the Pricking of My Thumbs” from Agatha Christie’s Marple series, had a personal life that stirred controversy. In 1997, she began a relationship with Carlo Mantegazza, who is not only three years her senior but also her first cousin. The couple welcomed a son, Matteo, which left Sacchi’s Italian father, Luca, deeply upset given Carlo’s familial ties and his position within the family’s textile business.
Greta and Carlo’s relationship had been kept under wraps for several months until she revealed it to her family during her first trimester of pregnancy. The news didn’t sit well with her father. “My dad, Luca, was deeply offended and quite devastated. He was very angry,” Sacchi recalled. Her uncles also voiced their disapproval, expressing their displeasure openly.
In a candid discussion with the Daily Mail, Sacchi shared the backlash they faced. Her relatives deemed the relationship unacceptable and contrary to Catholic teachings. “We were hounded by the media, and a lot of nasty stuff has been written about me as a result,” she revealed in a 2011 interview.
Greta explained that their romantic involvement was unexpected. Having been friends for years, their relationship took a surprising turn one evening during a visit. “It came as a complete shock,” she admitted.
The reaction from her Italian relatives was intense, with many expressing outrage. The situation was particularly painful for her father, who had distanced himself from most of his family due to personality conflicts, maintaining a close bond only with Carlo, his favorite nephew.
“They were close friends, and for a while afterwards they didn’t speak. Dad was furious, and Carlo was very hurt,” she said.
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The fallout was such that the star of such films as White Mischief (1987), Presumed Innocent (1990), The Player (1992) and Emma (1996) feared she may have to get rid of her baby and said: “It felt like the end of the world.”
Adding to the stress was her then five-year-old daughter Leila, whose father is the Italian American actor and Law & Order: Criminal Intent star Vincent D’Onofrio. The child was furious at the thought of sharing her mother’s affections for the first time.
Despite all the flak, the couple weathered the storm until 2010 when they amicably parted ways. In 2022, a source close to the couple told MailOnline: “They simply grew apart as couples often do, but there’s no animosity between them whatsoever. They obviously have a son together and wish each other well. It just wasn’t meant to be.
“Greta’s privacy is very important to her, and she’s never been comfortable discussing anything about her own life off-screen. Both she and Carlo are very private people.”