Davinia Taylor
Encyclopedia
Davinia Taylor is an English
actress and socialite
.
, Bolton School
and then Winstanley Sixth Form College from 1994, studying theatre and Performing arts A Levels. She left before finishing her course to work as a model
. She then joined the Channel 4
soap opera
Hollyoaks
, playing party girl Jude Cunningham from 1996–1998. In 2006, The Sunday Mirror
reported that Taylor was returning to the cast of Hollyoaks, but she has since withdrawn from the opportunity due to "personal problems".
The original Hollyoaks part led to roles in the television movies Bostock's Cup
, Is Harry on the Boat?
, the comedic film, Soul Patrol, as well as a spot on an episode of Urban Gothic, presenting work on The Big Breakfast
and Top of the Pops
@ Play and an appearance in the documentary series Young, Hot and Talented for Channel 5. She appeared in Maxim
magazine in February 2003, and has been named in FHM's
"100 Sexiest Women in the World" list in 1996 (56), 1997 (97), and 1998 (86).
Opened her own hair and beauty salon 'Taylor Made' in London in March 2011.
.
Taylor married football agent Dave Gardner in July, 2003. David Beckham
was best man, while Taylor's bridesmaid was Jenny Frost
of Atomic Kitten
. Sister Sledge
performed at the reception, and Gardner gave his new bride gifts that included a £40,000 engagement ring and a £89,000 Mercedes-Benz
. They separated for a third time in 2005, but soon got back together.
Since giving up acting around the same time as her marriage in 2003, Taylor has become frequently been featured in the British tabloid press, as part of the Primrose Hill set
with Sadie Frost
(actress and ex-wife of Jude Law
), and supermodel Kate Moss
. Moss's boyfriend Pete Doherty
was photographed smoking cocaine on Taylor's father's yacht
in Summer 2005. In September 2005, Taylor booked into rehab suffering from "acute depression", after tabloids reported that Taylor had slept with Frost's boyfriend Barry Smith.
After the couple had IVF treatment, Taylor gave birth to a son named Grey on 25 June 2007 at London's Portland Hospital
. She and Gardner divorced in 2010, with Gardner gaining custody over their son. Shortly afterwards, Taylor gave an interview in which she talked about her problems with alcohol addiction and bi-polar disorder. She is currently pregnant with her second child.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actress and socialite
Socialite
A socialite is a person who participates in social activities and spends a significant amount of time entertaining and being entertained at fashionable upper-class events....
.
Career
Taylor attended Rossall SchoolRossall School
Rossall School is a British, co-educational, independent school, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St. Vincent Beechey as a sister school to Marlborough College which had been founded the previous year...
, Bolton School
Bolton School
Bolton School is an independent day school in Bolton, in the North-West of England. It comprises a co-educational Nursery and Infant School and single sex Junior and Senior Schools . With almost 2,400 pupils it is one of the largest independent day schools in the country.-History:Bolton School...
and then Winstanley Sixth Form College from 1994, studying theatre and Performing arts A Levels. She left before finishing her course to work as a model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
. She then joined the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks
Hollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
, playing party girl Jude Cunningham from 1996–1998. In 2006, The Sunday Mirror
The Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror is a British national daily tabloid newspaper which was founded in 1903. Twice in its history, from 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was changed to read simply The Mirror, which is how the paper is often referred to in popular parlance. It had an...
reported that Taylor was returning to the cast of Hollyoaks, but she has since withdrawn from the opportunity due to "personal problems".
The original Hollyoaks part led to roles in the television movies Bostock's Cup
Bostock's Cup
Bostock's Cup was a one-off British television comedy drama about a football team which appeared on ITV on the eve of the 1999 European Cup final. It was written by Chris England, directed by Marcus Mortimer and produced by Mark Robson. It starred Tim Healy as the club's manager, Neil Pearson as a...
, Is Harry on the Boat?
Is Harry on the Boat?
Is Harry on the Boat? was a 2001 British made for TV film, based on the lives of holiday reps in Ibiza. A television drama series then followed, airing on Sky One from 2002 to 2003.-Background:It's based on the book of the same name by Colin Butts...
, the comedic film, Soul Patrol, as well as a spot on an episode of Urban Gothic, presenting work on The Big Breakfast
The Big Breakfast
The Big Breakfast was a British light entertainment television show shown on Channel 4 and S4C each weekday morning from 28 September 1992 until 29 March 2002 during which period 2,482 shows were produced. The Big Breakfast was produced by Planet 24, the production company co-owned by former...
and Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
@ Play and an appearance in the documentary series Young, Hot and Talented for Channel 5. She appeared in Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
magazine in February 2003, and has been named in FHM's
FHM
FHM, originally published as For Him Magazine, is an international monthly men's lifestyle magazine.- History :The magazine began publication in 1985 in the United Kingdom under the name For Him and changed its title to FHM in 1994 when Emap Consumer Media bought the magazine, although the full For...
"100 Sexiest Women in the World" list in 1996 (56), 1997 (97), and 1998 (86).
Opened her own hair and beauty salon 'Taylor Made' in London in March 2011.
Personal life
Taylor's father, Alan Murphy, a multi-millionaire, ran the AM Paper toilet roll factory in SkelmersdaleSkelmersdale
Skelmersdale is a town in West Lancashire, England. It lies on high-ground on the River Tawd, to the west of Wigan, to the northeast of Liverpool, south-southwest of Preston. As of 2006, Skelmersdale had a population of 38,813, down from 41,000 in 2004. The town is known locally as Skem.The...
.
Taylor married football agent Dave Gardner in July, 2003. David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
was best man, while Taylor's bridesmaid was Jenny Frost
Jenny Frost
Jennifer "Jenny" Frost is an English singer, dancer, television presenter and model. She was a member of girl group Precious before replacing Kerry Katona in chart topping band Atomic Kitten from 2001 until they split in 2008. Frost presented makeunder show Snog Marry Avoid? from 2008 to 2011...
of Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten
Atomic Kitten were an English girl group from Liverpool, first established in 1997. Created by Andy McCluskey, the final line-up, and most commercially successful, consisted of Natasha Hamilton, Liz McClarnon, and Jenny Frost...
. Sister Sledge
Sister Sledge
Sister Sledge is an American musical group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed in 1972 and consisting of four sisters: Kim Sledge Debbie Sledge , Joni Sledge , and Kathy Sledge . They are granddaughters of the former opera singer Viola Williams. The sisters used to perform under the name of "Mrs...
performed at the reception, and Gardner gave his new bride gifts that included a £40,000 engagement ring and a £89,000 Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
. They separated for a third time in 2005, but soon got back together.
Since giving up acting around the same time as her marriage in 2003, Taylor has become frequently been featured in the British tabloid press, as part of the Primrose Hill set
Primrose Hill set
The Primrose Hill set is a name often applied to a group of British film and television actors who achieved celebrity in the mid-1990s. The term grew in use in the British media to identify the group as socially homogeneous and also as a convenient label similar to the Young British Artists and...
with Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost
Sadie Frost is an English actress, who currently runs fashion label Frost French and has designed the kitchens for a new development in the East End of London.-Biography:Frost was born Sadie Liza Vaughan in London...
(actress and ex-wife of Jude Law
Jude Law
David Jude Heyworth Law , known professionally as Jude Law, is an English actor, film producer and director.He began acting with the National Youth Music Theatre in 1987, and had his first television role in 1989...
), and supermodel Kate Moss
Kate Moss
Kate Moss is an English model. Moss is known for her waifish figure and popularising the heroin chic look in the 1990s. She is also known for her controversial private life, high profile relationships, party lifestyle, and drug use. Moss changed the look of modelling and started a global debate on...
. Moss's boyfriend Pete Doherty
Pete Doherty
Peter Doherty is an English musician, writer, actor, poet and artist. He is best known musically for being co-frontman of The Libertines, which he reformed with Carl Barât in 2010. His other musical project is indie band Babyshambles...
was photographed smoking cocaine on Taylor's father's yacht
Yacht
A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...
in Summer 2005. In September 2005, Taylor booked into rehab suffering from "acute depression", after tabloids reported that Taylor had slept with Frost's boyfriend Barry Smith.
After the couple had IVF treatment, Taylor gave birth to a son named Grey on 25 June 2007 at London's Portland Hospital
Portland Hospital
The Portland Hospital for Women and Children, usually referred to simply as the Portland Hospital, is a hospital in Great Portland Street, London...
. She and Gardner divorced in 2010, with Gardner gaining custody over their son. Shortly afterwards, Taylor gave an interview in which she talked about her problems with alcohol addiction and bi-polar disorder. She is currently pregnant with her second child.