The world of nobility and celebrity intertwined recently as an aristocrat, linked to the upper echelons of British society, was spotted in a passionate embrace with actress Sophie Turner, famous for her role in Game of Thrones. His family fortune, no less than a staggering £224 million, underscores the tale of wealth and connection that dates to the suitor’s past, which includes a romantic history with the goddaughter of King Charles.
Meet Peregrine Pearson: the inheritor of the impressive legacy of Michael Pearson, the 4th Viscount Cowdray. Once a film producer, Viscount Cowdray holds a substantial stake in the Pearson media conglomerate, positioning his family among Britain’s wealthiest clans.
At 29, Peregrine resides in a luxurious £5 million Chelsea abode, while his father, the Viscount, lords over an expansive West Sussex estate. This impressive property boasts 22 bedrooms and spans 16,500 acres, complete with 10 world-class polo pitches, setting the scene for elite gatherings.
Previously linked romantically to Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark, a 27-year-old model, Peregrine recently parted ways with her. The split, surfacing in September, was attributed to their growing apart.
A snapshot immortalized by The Sun captured Peregrine and Sophie Turner locked in a kiss on a Parisian street, their public affection preceding their joint appearance at the Rugby World Cup. This sighting adds a twist to the narrative, occurring only a month after Turner’s ex-husband, Joe Jonas, initiated divorce proceedings.
Peregrine Pearson (pictured in December 2021) – dubbed Britain’s ‘most eligible bachelor’ – was spotted kissing Sophie Turner in Paris on Saturday
Outing: In recent days, the pair were also seen attending the Stade de France together, with Sophie smiling as she walked a few paces ahead of Peregrine (pictured)
Exes: Peregrine was previously in a relationship with King Charles’s goddaughter, Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark (pictured in November), but they split earlier this year
An onlooker who spotted Sophie and Peregrine in Paris said: ‘They arrived together at the chauffeur pick-up location outside of the station.
‘It looked like they might have both come on the Eurostar from London.’
While Sophie is said to be worth a whopping £10million, this pales in comparison to Peregrine’s family fortune.
His ancestral estate is home to Cowdray Park Polo Club, which boasts 10 pitches and hosts more than 450 matches each year.
The prestigious club hosts the annual Gold Cup, where both Prince William and Prince Harry have played. The Gold Cup is polo’s most prestigious European event.
The main Cowdray House, bought in 1908 by Peregrine’s great-great-grandfather Weetman Dickinson Pearson, has 120 acres of formal gardens and woodland.
The house was a replacement for a Tudor manor built by the Montague family, which burnt down in 1793.
In 2009, Lord and Lady Cowdray reportedly decided to put the estate on the market for £25million, but decided they couldn’t part with the property and instead started hosting luxury events there, with Cowdray Hall now serving as a wellness centre.
Cowdray Hall offers spiritual workshops, retreats and weekly classes, and features a chapel used for yoga, Pilates and meditation.
No heartbreak here! Princess Olympia of Greece was all smiles as left her London home with TikTok chef Thomas Straker – after her ex was spotted kissing Sophie
Feeling good: King Charles’s goddaughter, 27, beamed as she made her way to the celebrity chefs car, in Notting Hill, on Wednesday
Family: Property developer Peregrine is the eldest son and heir of Michael Pearson, the 4th Viscount Cowdray and his wife Marina (both pictured in July 2018), who split up in August
Upbringing: Peregrine said his artist mother Marina (both pictured with his brother Montague in 2014) never forced them to play polo and allowed them to be ‘creative’
Smooch: Peregrine was spotted kissing Sophie Turner on Saturday and, just hours later, they were also spotted arriving at Stade de France together (pictured)
Peregrine previously admitted that despite being the heir to the sprawling estate, which also features a farm shop and café, he does not play polo himself.
He told the Telegraph in 2018: ‘I’m getting lessons, I grew up riding and over the next few years it’s something I can see myself doing a lot more.’
The publication also reported that Peregrine was taking a more active role in running the estate and was shadowing chief executive Jonathan Russell to learn about the intricacies of the polo club.
‘It’s great to be able to observe it from a distance and see what my future role is going to be,’ Peregrine said.
Peregrine’s own children will not grow up on the Cowdray Estate due to it being transformed into an events venue, but Peregrine said he isn’t upset at the prospect as he looked towards the future.
‘Having heard the stress of managing these type of houses, it’s the perfect compromise,’ he told The Telegraph.
‘The house is still an important part of the community and a valuable employer, without costing us money to run. And I still have the luxury of using it when I like.’
Peregrine, known to friends as Perry, began dating his ex, Princess Maria-Olympia, in 2020.
Friends began whispering about the state of their relationship when Peregrine was conspicuous by his absence at the Chelsea-based model’s 27th birthday party in July.
Royal links: Cowdray Park Polo Club has 10 pitches and hosts more than 450 matches each year (Prince William and US singer Pharrell Williams are pictured at the club in 2006)
Impressive: His father owns a sprawling 16,500-acre West Sussex estate (pictured in 2015) which is home to Cowdray Park Polo Club
Royalty: The prestigious club hosts the annual Gold Cup, where both Prince William and Prince Harry (pictured in August 2003) have played
After their split, Olympia, the only daughter of Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece and his wife, Marie-Chantal Miller, ‘unfollowed’ Peregrine on Instagram.
She also deleted all traces of him on her account on the picture-sharing app.
‘They grew apart,’ a source told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden at the time. ‘Their friends and family were hoping their union would lead to marriage, but it wasn’t meant to be.’
Olympia’s grandfather is King Constantine, a relation of the late Prince Philip, who was exiled from Greece following the 1967 coup. The family continue to use their royal titles decades after the abolition of the monarchy.
Their split came after Peregrine was absent from the model’s 27th birthday party two months earlier in July.
The couple had not been seen in public together since November 2022, and did not holiday together this year after three consecutive summers of doing so.
Instead, the Princess visited Italy and Greece with family and friends including actress Poppy Delevingne, who has been linked to her brother Prince Constantine Alexios.
Meanwhile, Peregrine spent his summer with pals in Cow Neck, New York state, as well as in Spain with family. He also went to the Burning Man festival in Nevada.
However, Olympia looked far from downcast on Wednesday as she spent time with celebrity chef Thomas Straker amid her ex’s new rumoured romance.
Olympia and Thomas appeared to be joking and laughing as they walked down the street together.
Thomas, 33, has a huge social media presence with 1.4million followers on Instagram, 2.1million on TikTok and 250,000 on YouTube, and runs a restaurant in Notting Hill.
Preferring to stay out of the spotlight, Peregrine’s Instagram is private and is followed by Jamie Redknapp and Olivia Bentley. Sophie Turner is now listed among his followers.
In August, it emerged that Peregrine’s father Lord Cowdray and his wife Marina, the Viscountess Cowdray, had separated after 36 years of marriage.
Break-up: It comes after Sophie recently reached a temporary custody agreement with Joe Jonas (pictured in March 2022) last month, following their split
‘It’s highly acrimonious,’ a family friend claimed to the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden at the time.
‘Marina has walked out of the marriage. Michael [the viscount] is devastated. The New Age stuff has changed her.’
Marina, the daughter of late Tory MP John Cordle, was Michael’s second wife. He was previously married to Fritzi (Ellen) Erhardt, the daughter of a German industrialist.
As well as Peregrine, the couple also have a daughter Eliza Pearson, 35, who married Ned Rocknroll – who changed his surname from Abel Smith – in 2009.
Princess Beatrice was among the guests at the open-air pagan wedding ceremony led by a druid, but the pair went their separate ways just years later.
Ned, a nephew of Virgin billionaire Sir Richard Branson, went on to marry actress Kate Winslet in 2012 and the couple are still together.
Meanwhile, Eliza went on to marry Norwegian financier Leif Kvaal and they have three children together, according to Tatler.
As well as Peregrine and Eliza, Lord Cowdray and his wife also have daughters Emily and Catrina, and another son Montague.
Lord Cowdray also has a son called Sebastian from a previous relationship with model Barbara Ray.
Reflecting on his childhood in 2018, Peregrine said his artist mother Marina never forced them to play polo, despite growing up on the grounds of a prestigious polo club, and allowed them to be ‘creative’.
He told the Telegraph how he and his siblings would spend a lot of time with their mother in her pottery studio in the garden as the heir of the Cowdray fortune looked back on his upbringing.