Lady Kitty Eleanor Lewis (née Spencer; born 28 December 1990) is a British model and aristocrat. She is the eldest child of

Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer Charles Edward Maurice Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, (born 20 May 1964), styled Viscount Althorp between 1975 and 1992, is a British peer, author, journalist, and broadcaster. He is the younger brother of Diana, Princess of Wales, and is the mate ...

, niece of Diana, Princess of Wales and the first cousin of

The Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers o ...

and The Duke of Sussex. Spencer is the spokesmodel for jewellery brand Bulgari and fashion company

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...

Early life and education

Spencer was born at St Mary's Hospital, London on 28 December 1990 to Charles Spencer, Viscount Althorp (later the 9th Earl Spencer) and Victoria Lockwood. She is a member of the

Spencer family The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...

, an English noble family that holds multiple

peerages A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Bel ...

.Moncreiffe of that Ilk, Sir Iain (1982).''Royal Highness''. London: Hamish Hamilton. p. 38. Spencer has three younger siblings and four younger half-siblings through her father's second marriage to Caroline Freud and third marriage to Karen Villeneuve and her mother's second marriage to Jonathan Aitken. Her paternal aunt was Diana, Princess of Wales. She is a first cousin of

Prince William, Prince of Wales William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. Born in London, William was educa ...

, and

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succ ...

. She was raised in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

, where she attended

Reddam House Reddam House is an independent, co-educational, non-denominational, day school, located in Woollahra (pre-school to Year 9) and North Bondi (Years 10 to 12), both Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Reddam House was acqui ...

, a private school. After her parents divorced in 1997, Spencer spent her time between her native United Kingdom with her father and South Africa with her mother. In 2009 Spencer was presented as a debutante at the

Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel () is a historic luxury hotel in Paris which opened in 1909 in a building dating to 1758. Located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, the Crillon, along with the Hôtel de la Marine, is one of two identical s ...

's le Bal des Débutantes in Paris. Spencer studied psychology, politics, and English literature at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

. She later studied art history and Italian in Florence, Italy, before completing a master's degree in luxury brand management from the

European Business School London European Business School London (EBS London) was a private Business School in Regent's Park in Central London. It was a constituent school of Regent's College London, which became Regent's University London in 2013. EBS London offered courses ...

Regent's University London Regent's University London (formerly Regent's College) is a private university located in London, England. It is part of Galileo Global Education, Europe’s largest higher education provider. Regent's University London was established in 1984 ...

Career

In 1992, when Spencer was one year old, she appeared with her mother on the cover of '' Harper's Bazaar UK''. Spencer is signed with

Storm Model Management Storm Management is a British model agency based in Chelsea, London. Background Storm was founded in 1987 by Sarah Doukas in London. Doukas discovered Kate Moss, Cara Delevingne, Behati Prinsloo, and Anya Taylor-Joy. In 2009, Doukas sold a con ...

, and made her professional modelling debut in 2015 in the December issue of ''

Tatler ''Tatler'' is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications focusing on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper-middle class and upper class, and those interes ...

''. In September 2017 she walked for

in a fashion show during

Milan Fashion Week Milan Fashion Week ( it, Settimana della moda) is a clothing trade show held semi-annually in Milan, Italy. The autumn/winter event is held in February/March of each year, and the spring/summer event is held in September/October of each year. It ...

. She was the 2017 June covergirl of '' Hello Fashion Monthly'', and was featured on the cover of ''

Vogue Japan ''Vogue'' is an American monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine that covers many topics, including haute couture fashion, beauty, culture, living, and runway. Based at One World Trade Center in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, ''Vog ...

''. She walked the runway for Dolce & Gabbana in their 2017 Christmas show at Harrods. In 2018, Spencer was a featured model in Dolce & Gabbana's Venetian spring/summer print campaign. During 2018 Milan Fashion Week Spencer walked in Dolce & Gabbana's Secrets & Diamonds fashion show. In May 2018

BVLGARI Bulgari (, ; stylized as BVLGARI) is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1884 and known for its jewellery, watches, fragrances, accessories, and leather goods. While the majority of design, production and marketing is overseen and exe ...

announced that Spencer would be the new face of the jewellery brand, working as their newest brand ambassador. She had previously modelled for the jewellery designer, modelling the brand's Diva's Dream diamond necklace. On 23 September 2018, Spencer walked in a fashion show in Milan for Dolce & Gabbana's Spring 2019 collection. She also appeared in editorials for '' Marie Claire'' Spain and ''

Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...

'' Russia, and graced the covers of ''

L'Officiel ''L'Officiel'' () is a French fashion magazine with a USA edition. It has been published in Paris since 1921 and targets upper-income, educated women aged from 25 to 49. In 2006, it had a circulation of 101,719. A men's edition of ''L'Officiel'', ' ...

'' Brazil and ''Tatler'', the latter alongside

Helena Christensen Helena Christensen (born 25 December 1968) is a Danish model and photographer. She is a former Victoria's Secret Angel, clothing designer and beauty queen. Christensen was also the co-founder and original creative director for ''Nylon'' magazine, ...

. She was officially announced as a brand ambassador for Dolce & Gabbana in February 2021.

Personal life

Although Lady Kitty is the 9th Earl Spencer's firstborn child, the title and family estates,

Althorp Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest of ...

and

Spencer House Spencer House may refer to: * Spencer House, Westminster, Greater London, England United States * Spencer House (Hartford, Connecticut), listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in Hartford County * Spencer House in Columbus, Ge ...

, will pass to her younger brother, Viscount Althorp, due to primogeniture, as specified in the succession of the Earldom of Spencer. Spencer expressed her personal belief in

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making; and the state of valuing d ...

, while also stating that she believes her brother should inherit. In January 2020, Spencer announced her engagement to the 61-year-old South African-British multimillionaire businessman,

Michael Lewis Michael Monroe Lewis (born October 15, 1960) Gale Biography In Context. is an American author and financial journalist. He has also been a contributing editor to ''Vanity Fair'' since 2009, writing mostly on business, finance, and economics. He ...

, chairman of fashion company

Foschini Group TFG Limited, also known as The Foschini Group, is a South African JSE listed retail clothing group, which trades under various brands and has more than 3,000 stores within its portfolio. It is headquartered in Parow East near Cape Town. In 201 ...

. They married in Rome at the

Villa Aldobrandini The Villa Aldobrandini is a villa in Frascati, Italy. It is still owned and lived in by the Aldobrandini family, and known as Belvedere for its location overlooking the valley toward the city of Rome. It is the only grand Pope, Papal garden not o ...

on 24 July 2021. Her wedding dress, a lace, long-sleeved Victorian-inspired gown, was designed by Dolce & Gabbana. The company designed five custom dresses in total for the celebrations, which took place over the course of three days. Spencer has three adult stepchildren from her husband's previous marriage. Spencer is an ambassador for Centrepoint, a charity that supports homeless youth, and a trustee and patron for the military charity Give Us Time. In June 2017 Spencer helped raise £140,000 for the

Elton John AIDS Foundation The Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) is a nonprofit organization, established by rock musician Sir Elton John in 1992 in the United States and 1993 in the United Kingdom to support innovative HIV prevention, education programs, direct care a ...

. She also has raised funds for

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Kitty 1990 births Debutantes of le Bal des débutantes English female models English socialites University of Cape Town alumni Homelessness activists Living people Daughters of British earls English expatriates in South Africa Fashion influencers Alumni of European Business School London Models from London Kitty British women bloggers British debutantes 21st-century English women 21st-century English people