EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Is Farage’s all-male membership about to let women be part of?

Standing in stately splendour in the corner of St James’s Square, barely half a mile from Buckingham Palace, it unashamedly proclaims itself to be ‘a gentleman’s home from home’ – or, more specifically, ‘a home from home for dynamic and sociable gentlemen’.

But is the East India Club – whose past members included the late Sir Denis Thatcher and current ones number the ever vibrant Nigel Farage – about to ‘transition’ in controversial and perhaps painful manner?

I can disclose that the resolutely all-male institution, which levies a tasty £1,781 annual subscription on those aged 35 or over, has embarked on ‘a preliminary discussion’ to amalgamate with the City of London Club, a handsome, stucco-fronted bastion a couple of hundred yards from the Bank of England, in the heart of the City.

Such a ‘preliminary discussion’ might, initially at least, seem inconsequential, given that, in the past, the East India, founded in 1849, has merged with no fewer than four other clubs: the Sports Club in 1939; the Public Schools in 1972; the Devonshire in 1976; and the Eccentric in the 1980s. 

But all those were reassuringly men-only, whereas the City of London, founded in 1832, is ‘open on an equal basis to all’, indicating a willingness to embrace the fairer sex which, so far, the East India has resisted.

‘The East India has consistently voted against having a mixed membership,’ a club stalwart tells me, anguished by what he suggests is a deplorably underhand manoeuvre by some in its hierarchy.

The club declines to comment. But if change does come to the East India, who would bet against one of its members turning it to dramatic advantage by introducing a very feisty female?

‘Nigel could propose Sarah Pochin,’ muses a club boulevardier, referring to Reform UK’s first female MP who’s called for a ban of the burka.

A policy likely to find a comfortable majority throughout St James’s…

Princess’ secret passion for punk

‘God save the Queen, she ain’t no human being,’ Sex Pistol Johnny Rotten once wailed. But Princess Margaret was fascinated by the punk craze.

Recalling a royal audience, I Want To Be Free singer Toyah Willcox says: ‘I went with [fashion designer] Katharine Hamnett to St James’s Palace and Princess Margaret said we had been invited because they wanted to meet and see what a punk rocker looked like.

‘She was fabulous and had a very wicked sense of humour,’ she adds.

Perhaps Margaret shared some of the movement’s rebellious spirit?

When disgraced former Downing Street aide Matthew Doyle was introduced to the Lords last month, one of his two ermine-clad ‘supporters’ was Labour peer Roger Liddle. 

Liddle used to be bag carrier to Peter Mandelson and it was at his townhouse that Mandy used to plot with Sir Keir Starmer’s ex-chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney. Lord Liddle should watch his step!

Trinny’s new look: What robots wear

To think Trinny Woodall used to give blunt advice to ‘fashion disasters’ on makeover show What Not To Wear.

She might have had something to say about this bizarre get-up that she wore for a workout.

The beauty mogul, 62, donned a Skin LED Red Light Therapy Mask complete with dual-action neck and decolletage system.

‘I’m not prepared to let my skin health go, even if it does mean scaring my team in the process,’ says Trinny, who wore the contraption at work.

How the Chase’s formidable Anne Hegerty sees off thugs

One woman undaunted by Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan’s increasingly lawless capital is The Chase star Anne Hegerty.

‘I’ve never had a problem being mugged in London, but I’ve had a couple of people attempt it before,’ she tells me. ‘Once in Manchester and once in Middlesbrough, and both times they’ve left empty-handed because I screamed and swore a lot at them.’

Anne, 67, adds: ‘In Middlesbrough, I swore so much they were, like, ‘I’m going to report you to the police’. I said, ‘I don’t care, that’s my f***ing shopping bag.’ So they dropped it and ran.

‘Middle-aged, respectable lady suddenly swearing like that – it’s confusing.’

The Epstein Files are not the only reading matter concentrating minds at the Royal Household. For they want somebody to look after their own files and books. 

And, perhaps with a telling reminder to the former Prince Andrew, the job advert states: ‘You’ll be preserving history and knowledge from the past for millions to admire today and into the future.’

The Royal Collection Trust job pays up to £65,000 per year and is based at Windsor Castle.

Ore’s ex Portia: ‘I’ll never marry again!’

Strictly Come Dancing winner Ore Oduba’s candid admission that he struggled with an addiction to pornography for more than 30 years seems to have had a lasting impact on his ex-wife, Portia Jett.

After their nine-year marriage collapsed in 2024, the former TV researcher says she’ll never walk down the aisle again, admitting the idea of it has been ‘ruined’ for her. ‘I have a different view of marriage and the advice I would give my children,’ says Portia, who has two young kids with the TV presenter.

She adds: ‘The divorce process is one of the hardest and most stressful thing I have ever been through. I would never put myself through that again.’

Portia is now going out with Joshua Saxon Birch, a British-German businessman, 37, who works in data management. She’s now looking for long-term commitment in the form of a ‘promise ring’.

Titchmarsh trims house price

TV gardener Alan Titchmarsh has had to prune the asking price of his Hampshire farmhouse after it failed to find a buyer despite extensive publicity.

The host put the 17th century, five-bedroom property in Holybourne on the market for just under £4million last September. Five months later, he has slashed the asking price by £450,000.

Titchmarsh, 76, said he and his wife, Alison, who have lived at the house since 2002, wanted to be closer to his two daughters and grandchildren in Surrey.