One of Britain’s most eligible bachelors and self-made millionaire playboy, Robin Pattinson, has finally got his happy ending thanks to the support of his loving wife, Rachel, and their two adorable children, Lark and Bunny.
The star, who rose to fame as one of the “it” boys of the nineties, spent years trying to stay faithful to his family and friends, but his seemingly endless stream of girlfriends and high-profile escapades left him longing for permanent, committed love. In 2018, at the age of 45, he decided to finally put a ring on it and proposed to his longtime sweetheart, who accepted, believing that their relationship would bring her the security and happiness she longed for.
In an exclusive interview with Emma from Hello!, Robin shares his story of what it’s like to grow up rich and famous, and how he met his wife. He also opens up about the rocky road to proposing, his regrets, and why he thinks age is the greatest determiner of a person’s attractiveness.
Early Life
Robin was born in December 1967 in London, one of four children of the late media tycoon, George Pattinson. His early life was filled with privilege. He attended the prestigious St. George’s School in London and then went to Oxford University, where he did not study but instead became involved in the city’s social scene. Robin was a keen traveller as a child, and accompanied his parents on their frequent, lengthy business trips around the world.
In 1980, at the age of 20, he took a gap year before starting his studies at the London School of Economics. It was during this time that he began his career in investment banking, first working for a small firm in the City and then moving to bigger and better things. In 1985, aged 24, he joined Swiss bank manager, UBS, where he rose to become a general counsel and finally, a senior managing director.
Hollywood And Business
But it was Robin’s time in Hollywood in the late 1980s that really established his career. He started acting in 1989, and within a year had landed a role in a TV pilot, which became the popular sitcom, Drop Dead Fred. He then went on to appear in the TV series, Young Prince, which starred Orlando Bloom, and landed a role in the Michael Caine spy thriller, The First Rule. He followed this up with a role in the action film, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, opposite Kevin Costner, and played a key part in the critically-acclaimed action TV series, The Hollow Crown.
After years of building his business, in the early 2010s Robin launched his own private equity firm, Capricorn Investment Group, specialising in media buys and sales. And in 2018, at 45 years old, he made the lucrative and arguably, glamorous move into film producing, signing a deal with Paramount Pictures to produce and finance his personal projects. As well as serving as chairman of the board, he will also be involved in all aspects of production, alongside Hollywood heavyweight, Jim Cameron.
Family
Robin grew up in a family of high achievers. His father, George, founded the international advertising agency, Ogilvy & created a publishing empire, turning around two of the country’s biggest selling weekly newspapers, the Sunday Times and the Financial Times. George also set up the charitable foundation, George Pattinson Foundation, which provides funding for entrepreneurs and young businesses. George, who passed away in 2016, was a great-grandfather of the bride and a groomsmen in the wedding videos of the children of the couple.
Robin’s mother, Jane, has a successful modelling career, appearing in advertisements for top brands such as Dior and Gucci. She is also an active charity campaigner and is involved in a number of educational and children’s charities. Robin’s younger brother, Luke, works for the international law firm, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer as a corporate lawyer and is married to the former Victoria Beckham.
Rachel is Robin’s wife of ten years, and their children, Lark and Bunny, are the light of his life. He described his family as the greatest achievement of his life. Together, Rachel and Robin have created a happy, stable family unit, filled with love and laughter. Aside from her husband, Rachel owns several successful businesses, and is an active campaigner, philanthropist, and charity fundraiser. She has used her businesses to provide funding for educational and cultural causes, and also creates awareness of issues affecting women and children around the world. She has set up two charitable foundations in Africa in order to protect women and children living in poverty, and provide access to education.
Robin met his wife, Rachel, while on holiday in South Africa in 2010. They fell in love over Skype and had the world at their fingertips. Having been married once before, in London, Robin was determined to make this relationship work. He proposed to Rachel in the Cape Winelands and she accepted. Their engagement was later made public when the couple wed at a luxurious London residence in November 2017. Since then, they have been enjoying the best of everything the city has to offer, with an unspent diamond the size of a large chicken as a wedding gift.
Marriage
In an interview with Hello! at the newlyweds’ London residence, Bishopsgate, Robin said that he had been in search of true love for a long time. He admitted that he sometimes felt lonely and desired the company of a woman. While travelling in Africa, he had met several marriage proposals, but didn’t believe that any of them were sincere until he found Rachel. He described their long-distance relationship as the most challenging part of their newlywed life, but said that it was ultimately worth it.
After their wedding, the couple revealed that they had already decided to have a child before they got married. They found out that she was expecting during Rachel’s last menstrual cycle, and were over the moon to discover that their child was a girl.
Their first child, Luna, was born in South Africa in March 2018 and given the middle names, Eve and Poppy, in honour of Robin’s late grandmother and mother, respectively. Robin and Rachel are passionate about animal rights and want to do their part to help ensure that animals are treated humanely. They have therefore chosen to support various animal charities, including the Animals Asia Foundation, World Animal Protection, and the Humane Society.
Looking Back
Looking back on his successful career, Robin said that he felt fortunate to have had the opportunities that he had. In a time where social media has made it easier for people to expose themselves to the world, he used his own experiences to advise those faced with similar situations. He told Hello! Magazine, “I always think to myself, ‘What would I do differently?’ And the answer is: I would have done absolutely nothing differently.”
Robin continued: “I was very lucky to have got my start in showbusiness when I did and to have had the opportunities that I had. Back in those days, there were no such things as ‘accountants’ and ‘lawyers’—nobody had even heard of stand-up comedians. I really did just fall into it, and I don’t regret for a minute that I did. I would do it all over again—except without all the drugs, of course.”
With over 20 years of experience in the field, Robin has created a wealth of knowledge and is an invaluable resource to anyone looking to get into the property market. Whether you’re in the process of purchasing your first home or are looking to invest in a lucrative commercial property, Robin is a man to see.