Her sporting passion is horse-racing, so Victoria Starmer – dressed stylishly in a turf-matching floral green number rather than her trademark red – chose a day at the races yesterday to escape the political drama in Downing Street.
The mother of two was spotted checking the runners and riders at Sandown Park in Surrey before the Coral-Eclipse, one of British horseracing’s most prestigious flat races. It was won by Derby winner City of Troy.
The Prime Minister’s wife inherited her love of the sport from her mother Barbara, who was born and raised in Doncaster. Her grandmother lived on the edge of the town’s famous racecourse.
On the kitchen wall of the Starmer family home in Kentish Town, north London, there is even a photo of the finishing post at Doncaster racecourse, reflecting Victoria’s fondness for horses and her mother’s roots.
The Prime Minister said recently: ‘Vic’s mum had horseracing in her blood and Vic loves it, too. She loves flat racing.’
Wearing sunglasses and chatting cheerfully to other racegoers, Victoria cut a relaxed figure at the Esher course in an Me+Em Lantana flower-print, drawstring maxi-dress, retailing at £227.50.
It was a notable contrast to the shades of red that she has sported since Sir Keir took over as Labour leader.
Most notably, the lawyer-turned-NHS occupational therapist made a bold statement after Labour’s resounding General Election victory on Friday morning in a poppy red, contrast-stitch, short-sleeved £275 gown – also by Me+Em – to make her first photocall alongside her husband in Downing Street.
Just 24 hours earlier, ‘Lady Vic’ had cut a more casual figure, arriving at a polling station in North London wearing a crimson red shirt-dress from US designer Simkhai (£445) paired with classic white trainers.
At a campaign event in London a week before the election, she wore a softly-pleated red/pink floral dress (currently £255) with a V-neck and cinched waist by The Kooples alongside Sir Keir as he made a last-minute appeal to voters.
She attended the Labour Party conference last year in a £1,200 red belted dress with fluted sleeves by designer label Edeline Lee.
And in 2022, she stuck to a similar, if less bright, theme: wearing a pleated burgundy shirt-dress with black tights and pumps.
Victoria’s style will stand her in good stead over the coming weeks and months as she finds herself increasingly in the spotlight. As Samantha Cameron observed of her time in No 10: ‘You learn super-quickly to wear colour.’
It is fast proving the fashion brand of choice for the new establishment: not only has Angela Rayner worn Me+Em for her the first two days in government, but Sir Keir Starmer’s wife Victoria has been pictured in the brand three days in a row.
Perhaps it’s no surprise, because the firm has close links to some Labour luminaries. Me+Em was founded by Clare Hornby in 2009.
Her husband is Johnny Hornby, managing director at TBWA – the marketing company which managed Tony Blair’s 2001 election campaign.
The Hornbys were named in this month’s Tatler as one of the nation’s power couples. Mr Hornby’s halfbrother is author Nick Hornby and his brother-in-law is novelist Robert Harris, a friend of Labour’s Peter Mandelson.
Me+Em’s ethos is ‘intelligent style’. Fashion insiders say its an an aspirational brand without being alienating or too intimidating, so very on message.
It has also been worn by the Princess of Wales, Katie Holmes and Nicole Kidman.
Lady Starmer wore a cream short-sleeved crop jacket (costing £295) at the election count on Thursday night; a poppy-red short-sleeved gown at Downing Street on Friday, and the green flower print dress at Sandown races yesterday