"Do I tengo el tiempo to go to el Doctor Chop-en-Stein antes de mi WEDDING?"
And by "gigolo" I mean "civil servant" because if you are the direct descendant of the Stuart Kings of Scotland and England a "civil servant" is really scraping the bottom of the barrel. She might as well have married the stable boy or the chimney sweep (Yes, I realize that a "chimney sweep" is an essentially British reference). Let's just be honest. But Cayetana Fitz-James-Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba and Grandee of Spain (in addition to 45 other titles) has never been one to follow the rules, the latest trends, perhaps, but not the rules. Just look at her. Her Excellency is doing her utmost to give Jocelyn Wildenstein (AKA the Bride of Wildenstein) a run for her money in the plastic surgery department. But somehow the Duchess of Alba is able to pull off her surgeries with a measure of grace that one might expect from a royal descendant. Before I am accused of pandering to the royals and aristocrats like an on-the-make Edwardian rake, how often do we get to see an actual blue blood do to their face what the Duchess of Alba has done to her own?
A ravishing Duchess of Alba with her fallen priest/second husband, Jesus Aguirre. Take that, fucking Catholicos!
Although the Duchess of Alba has been linked to numerous people throughout the years (the ubiquitous flamenco dancers, matadors, etc.), I was surprised to be reminded that this is only her third marriage. Mentally, I had given her an extra two or three, but I suppose I was confusing her with Elizabeth Taylor. Her first marriage, of course, was to another aristocrat, Luis Martinez de Irujo, in 1947. Her second marriage was the stuff of which 70s TV movies, telenovelas, and pillow books are made of: Her Excellency entered into blessed union with a former priest, the aptly named Jesus Aguirre. As controversial as the marriage was at the time, the two seemed smitten with one another in wedding photographs and of course, it was de rigeur in the 70s to go against the grain and who would the duchess be if she did not follow the latest trends? Now, the Duchess of Alba is set to marry Alfonso Diez, who comes in at a sprightly 61 years old to her (gasp) 85. Well, she looks good for 85. Details are still forthcoming, but perhaps, like the duchess's first marriage, this boda will take place in Seville, amidst the stifling idiocy of the other grandees of Spain.
