It is not news that London society swoons for a splashy surname. On that power list — among the Laws, Gallaghers and Mosses — Hurley packs a punch.
Many have heard of Damian Hurley, the 21-year-old luscious-locked son of actress Elizabeth Hurley — who made her name in with plunging, Versace safety pinned gown on Hugh Grant’s arm in 1994. Model Damian, who is signed by IMG, has racked up 141,000 Instagram followers; is a fixture at Brit Awards red carpets, Vogue parties at Annabel’s and front rows in Milan. He counts Sir Elton John and Grant as godfathers.
Yet his cousin, Miles Hurley, 26, is a far rarer figure to spot. The son of Elizabeth’s older sister Kate Curran (a retired writer’s agent) is also a model, signed by Next, but has been out the spotlight with a humble 8,972 followers on Instagram. Let me tell you, that’s not for lack of beauty.
The fact is sobering. On March 8, 2018, Miles and his friend were repeatedly stabbed in the back by a stranger in Nine Elms, south-west London. He was 21 at the time. “The knife didn’t hit my spinal cord or arteries. It all came down to angles and millimetres,” he said at the time. “I had a guardian angel that night. I lost six pints of blood.” Chaos ensued as a distraught Elizabeth flew back from New York to support her sister and nephew. She later criticised the police for dropping their investigation into the incident due to a lack of DNA evidence, saying she was “annoyed but not surprised”.
Before the attack, Miles’ scene credentials were encouraging: a pinnacle came as he sauntered down Dolce & Gabbana’s catwalk, looking like he had stepped out of Evelyn Waugh’s pages, in dapper velvet tailoring, green bow tie and sumptuous slippers. It was the brand’s autumn/winter 2018 catwalk, and he commanded attention alongside other familiar faces including Raff Law.
Now, five years on, the story has come full circle. This week, Miles made his re-emergence on the London society scene at a soirée hosted at the Italian luxury label’s flagship Bond Street shop, celebrating the launch of the new DG Logo Bag.
It was like no time had passed. With a chiselled jaw, sleeveless grey hoodie and ripped baggy jeans, he goofed around on the red carpet with a beaming Damian, who wrapped his arms around him for the cameras. Later, the cousins headed in to make up for lost time, chatting with Emma Weymouth, Marchioness of Bath, Lennon Gallagher and his girlfriend Isobel Richmond.
“I’m very proud of Miles,” Damian tells the Standard, “We are very, very close. The last few years have been tough. It’s great everyone is on the other side and happy moving forward.”
Could this be the year of the nepo nephew? Also on the scene is Moses Skinner, son of Sienna Miller’s fashion designer sister Savannah, who is an aspiring DJ.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.For Miles, whether the summer of 2023 marks the beginning of a re-blossoming modelling career remains to be seen. Damian says, “Who knows what the future holds but it’s all very exciting and I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next.”
Since the attack, Miles has posted infrequent (but certainly steamy) snaps charting the obvious hours he has committed to the gym in potential preparation.
Following half a decade’s wait, Miles’s ascension might just be in motion.
