In a quiet corner of west London, all is calm. Despite the expected chaos and carnage that usually comes with having a newborn baby, Made in Chelsea stars Sam and Alice Vanderpump are incredibly relaxed as they welcome hello! into their beautifully appointed apartment.
The reason for their serenity is lying peacefully in Sam’s arms before being passed to his besotted mother for a cuddle and a feed. Marmaduke Marcus Vanderpump had arrived safely just 11 days earlier – and the baby boy, known as Duke for short, has already changed their lives.
“Parenthood is the best thing in the world,” model Alice, 24, tells HELLO! in this exclusive shoot and interview at the family’s home in – where else? – Chelsea, as she and her husband of two months introduce Duke to the world. "When I look at him, I think 'This is where life begins'. He's my whole entire world."
Sam, who is equally in love, coos and chats away to his son throughout our interview and can barely take his eyes off him for a second. "I'm absolutely obsessed with him; being a father is amazing, there's nothing like it. Everyone talks about this golden moment when you hold your son for the first time and there was this wave of emotion which came over us which was incredible."
Touching name
The couple named Marmaduke in memory of Sam’s late father, Mark, who was the brother of the television star Lisa Vanderpump and who died by suicide at the age of 59 in 2018. Mark had wanted the name Marmaduke for Sam’s older brother, Jack. The baby's middle name, Marcus, is also a nod to his late grandfather.
"It means quite a lot to me to constantly have another little reminder that my dad was here; it's about trying to remember your loved ones as much as you can in as many ways as possible," Sam says. "I can already see features of my dad in him. Hopefully one day he will ask about his grandfather because it's hard for me to accept he never got to meet him."
"When I look at him, I think 'This is where life begins'. He's my whole entire world"
Duke was born on 9 February in the Kensington Wing of London’s Chelsea and Westminster hospital, weighing 8lbs 5oz.
"It was a very calm experience," Alice recalls. "But it was also fast-paced. I panicked a bit and started uncontrollably shaking, as I didn't have time to process what was happening."
Sam was panicking internally because he could see his wife's heart rate dropping on the monitors. The 28-year-old, who runs a currency business, carries a great deal of health anxiety; he was diagnosed with congenital hepatic fibrosis when he was four but was able to live life normally.
However, he was hospitalised at the end of 2024 after contracting flu brought on liver and kidney failure and sepsis. Last year, he was diagnosed with irreversible end-stage liver disease, with his life expectancy limited to four to five years without a transplant, for which he is now on a waiting list.
Thankfully all went well. The new family of three then spent the next two nights together in the Kensington Wing, receiving visitors including close family.
A surprise first hospital visit
In fact, Sam’s mother Simone Beasant and his aunt Lisa, who found fame in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, were at the hospital for the birth and were the first to greet the new parents as they were being wheeled into their room. "I often say that my aunt has stepped into my father's role since he passed," Sam says. "I see my dad so much in her so it was really nice to have her there; it was kind of like seeing my mum and dad there."
The whole parenting experience has made Sam look at his own health journey in a different light; he admits he struggled to come to terms with his diagnosis last year, turning the corner only as he and Alice married in a last-minute intimate ceremony in December which was exclusively covered by HELLO!.
© Sophie Cranston"The end of last year was really difficult for me and I couldn't deal with my emotions," he says. "I really struggled to be honest, and I was in therapy a hell of a lot but from the wedding onwards, it felt like I was turning over a new leaf and now I can process everything we're going through. I have tried to stay positive and am in the process of raising as much awareness around organ donation as possible, which takes some good out of such a horrific situation."
"Today, I'm absolutely fine," he explains. "You wouldn't even believe I need a liver transplant. I don't believe the doctors would operate on me at today's health, they have to find a sweet spot, so I have to become a little bit ill but not too ill."
He is, he admits, terrified to think about the complex transplant procedure. "There's some part of me that would want to get through it as quickly as possible and put it in the past. But I'm also terrified, as it’s a 12-hour operation, so if we can go another four or five years without having the liver transplant, then that also sounds amazing. I'll let fate decide."
Pick up the latest issue of Best Quality Designer Handbag to read the full interview. You can subscribe to Best Quality Designer Handbag to get the magazine delivered free to your door every week or purchase the digital edition online via our Apple or Google apps.
