It seems Elizabeth Hurley is rebounding from her broken engagement with Shane Warne by romancing a Russian billionaire 15 years her junior.
The 48-year-old actress was spotted entering the plush building of newspaper tycoon Evgeny Lebedev, 33, last week, where she stayed for several hours before the pair exited together in a chauffeur-driven Bentley.
Hurley’s hook-up comes just three weeks after she reunited with former flame Warne for a romantic Valentine’s weekend, but the former Australian cricketer was seen arriving at the hotel room of Ultimo lingerie mogul Michelle Mone just hours later.
Hurley’s younger beau is likely to be unphased by the media attention that will no doubt surround the high-profile relationship. Lebedev has cultivated a playboy reputation with a string of celebrity flames including Spice Girl, Geri Halliwell, 41, and model and author, Sophie Dahl, 36.
As the son of wealthy businessman and former KGB agent Alexander, Lebedev is one of the UK’s youngest media moguls; he owns the London Evening Standard and The Independent newspapers.
According to newspaper sources Liz and Evgeny have been friends for years with the pair mixing in similar social circles and sharing celebrity friends including David Williams and Elton John.
While the romance is still under speculation Liz has been confirmed to star in a new TV series on the E! Network. Titled The Royals, the show will “offer a fictional look behind the very public gilded facade of the palace gates to imagine the private, lush, fun, sexy world of the most-watched celebrity family” and Hurley will play a lead role as conniving Queen Helena.
The series is set to air in 2015.
