When the Archbishop of Canterbury discovered via a DNA test that his father was Winston Churchill’s private secretary, Sir Anthony Montague Browne, and not, as he had always believed, his mother’s first husband, Gavin Welby, he admitted it was a great surprise but said it was also ‘a story of redemption and hope’.
Now, Justin Welby’s mother, Jane Williams, has sprung another surprise – this time from beyond the grave.
I can disclose that the Archbishop has been informed that he has become a multi-millionaire, as his mother left him a staggering £2.4million.
The windfall is 28 times his annual salary of £85,000 as leader of the Church of England and head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. ‘It’s a life-changing sum,’ a friend tells me.
Newly published probate documents confirm that Williams, who died last July aged 93, left her entire estate to the Archbishop. By coincidence, he celebrates his 68th birthday tomorrow.
Justin Welby’s mother, Jane Williams, has sprung another surprise – this time from beyond the grave
The Most Rev Welby was conceived in an alcohol-fuelled ‘liaison’ between his mother and Sir Anthony, just days before the wedding of his ‘official’ parents.
His mother said in 2016 that it was ‘an almost unbelievable shock’. In a moving statement, she said she recognised her son deserved an explanation, not least because of his position in public life.
The extraordinary discovery forced Lambeth Palace to check canon law because men born illegitimately had been barred from becoming archbishops until the 1950s. Archbishop Welby said at the time: ‘There is no existential crisis and no resentment against anyone. My identity is founded in who I am in Christ.’
He said he was ‘enormously proud’ of his mother and said the news had not affected their relationship, adding: ‘I wasn’t in any way upset – I remain not upset.’ He went on: ‘I’ve had an extraordinary life. All the difficult things have turned out wonderful by the grace of God.’
The Archbishop said he had met his biological father, a decorated wartime RAF pilot, when he was a boy but had never suspected his true paternity. He had heard rumours but dismissed them because he was born almost exactly nine months after his mother’s April 1955 marriage to Gavin Welby, a whisky salesman.
But after The Daily Telegraph revealed its research supported those rumours, he took a DNA test that compared his mouth swabs with hair samples from Sir Anthony, taken from an old hairbrush. The samples showed a 99.9779 per cent probability that they were father and son.
Gavin Welby and wife Jane Welby with Justin Welby at his christening in 1956
Sir Anthony, who died in 2013, was married and his second wife, Shelagh, was said to have suspected in later years that he was the Archbishop’s father, because of the striking resemblance between the two men.
Sir Anthony was also said to have teasingly told her: ‘I’m told I have a son – you’ll find out [who he is] one day.’
By a twist of history, the private drama surrounding the Archbishop’s conception was played out in the final days of Churchill’s time in Downing Street. His mother, who married again and later became Lady Williams of Elvel, was one of the prime minister’s personal secretaries and said her liaison with Sir Anthony happened in the days before her marriage to Gavin Welby, on April 4, 1955. Churchill left Downing Street only two days later.
Anthony Montague Browne, Sir Winston Churchill’s secretary and the Archbishop’s father
Newly published probate documents confirm that Williams, who died last July aged 93, left her entire estate to the Archbishop
She said Welby, whom she described as ‘a very strong, possessive character’, had bullied her into leaving her job and eloping with him to the USA, where his divorce was being finalised.
Then 25, she said she began drinking heavily because of the pressure, adding: ‘I now recognise that during the days leading up to my very sudden marriage, and fuelled by a large amount of alcohol on both sides, I went to bed with Anthony Montague Browne.
‘It appears that the precautions taken at the time didn’t work and my wonderful son was conceived as a result of this liaison.’
Lady Williams said she did not see Sir Anthony again for a long time afterward although they met occasionally after her ‘short and, sadly, dysfunctional’ marriage to Welby ended in 1958.
Her drinking later developed into ‘serious alcoholism’, she said, and she entered rehab in 1968 and has not drunk alcohol since. She went on to become a magistrate and a deputy lieutenant for Greater London. Welby was also an alcoholic and died in 1977.
Star Trek’s Captain Jean-Luc Picard wants to boldly go back to the West End. Sir Patrick Stewart, 83, who last trod the boards in Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land in 2016, says: ‘Theatre was my first love, and I would like to find an appropriate way of saying thank you and goodbye to it. The one play that comes up repeatedly is King Lear. I was in it once, but I played a supporting role and that was many decades ago. And, of course, Shakespeare was always my primary obsession and love.’
Murder on the dancefloor for former Dragons’ Den star Duncan Bannatyne
Before Duncan Bannatyne married Nigora Whitehorn, the sports club tycoon gave short shrift to those who claimed he would struggle to keep up with the dental surgery receptionist 31 years his junior.
Now, the former Dragon’s Den star is nursing his injuries.
I hear that the Clydebank foundry worker’s son, who turns 75 next month, seriously hurt himself while strutting his stuff on the dancefloor at the Gyp Sea resort, where he was on holiday with Nigora in St. Barts, in the French West Indies.
He was supported by a crutch as he prepared to fly home from Gustaf III Airport in St Barts, where the brace around his right leg could be seen.
I hear that the Clydebank foundry worker’s son, who turns 75 next month, seriously hurt himself while strutting his stuff on the dancefloor at the Gyp Sea resort
‘He broke his leg in London eight weeks ago and was making a great recovery until his active holiday in the Caribbean, which involved dancing until 4am,’ his spokesman tells me, adding: ‘He used his leg brace to get back in recovery for his flight and is feeling fine now.’
Bannatyne, who has an estimated fortune of more than £400million, has six children from his previous two marriages. He met Uzbekistan-born Nigora when he visited the dental clinic where she worked in Harley Street, London.
She has a daughter from a previous relationship and has spoken about how she and Bannatyne tried unsuccessfully to have a child together, but were ‘not going to stress about it.’ The couple married in 2017 in Portugal, where they have a home.
Emma and Serena’s gym jams
How about this for a personal trainer? The Marchioness of Bath, aka former Strictly Come Dancing star Emma Weymouth, has been put through her paces by seven-times Wimbledon champion Serena Williams.
Serena, 42, has shared a video of her instructing Lady Bath, 37, during the workout in America.
The tennis star, also wearing workout gear, encourages her to stick to her New Year’s resolutions. ‘All right, every day in the gym this year,’ Serena can be heard telling her. ‘I mean, who is this lady? Just, goodness.’
Emma is thought to have been introduced to Serena by the champion’s older sister, Venus Williams, who was seen with Lady Bath at Dolce & Gabbana’s Alta Moda fashion show in Puglia, Italy, last year.
Emma lives at Longleat House in Wiltshire with her husband, Ceawlin, the Marquess of Bath, and their two children. The estate is known for its safari park, which opened in 1966 and was the first outside Africa.
The Marchioness of Bath, aka former Strictly Come Dancing star Emma Weymouth, has been put through her paces by seven-times Wimbledon champion Serena Williams
Things can only get better for Chloe Delevingne, who was forced to abandon her VW Golf in a muddy field on New Year’s Eve. ‘I was driving near my house and I took a wrong turn and because it was so wet outside I literally slid down the hill,’ she tells me. Chloe, the sister of models Cara and Poppy Delevingne, says of the incident, in Oxfordshire: ‘The car was stuck there for two days as I didn’t want to bother anyone with it.’ The socialite, who has two children with husband Edward Grant, adds: ‘My New Year’s resolution is to be happy and healthy.’
Let it be… John wasn’t scowling
Idolised by millions, John Lennon was, though, paid scant respect by comedian Jimmy Tarbuck, who was in his class at Dovedale Primary School in Liverpool.
Colin Hanton, who played drums with The Quarrymen, precursor to The Beatles, recalls: ‘John never meant to cause trouble — but, because he was short‑sighted, he would scrunch up his eyes to look at you.
‘People would say: “Who are you scowling at?” Jimmy Tarbuck had John by the collar one night, up against the wall at the top of Penny Lane. Pete Shotton [the band’s washboard player] had to intervene. “No, he’s all right — he just can’t see.”‘
Other pupils at Dovedale included fellow Beatle George Harrison and newsreader Peter Sissons.
At a Diarists’ Lunch at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge, Tarby, 83, recalled a teacher asking what they had learned today. ‘It’s amazing, Sir,’ Lennon replied, ‘Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 40ft clipper.’
