BONHAM CARTER AND BRANAGH IN LOVE SPLIT
Press Association, 9/17/99Actress Helena Bonham Carter today confirmed she had split from her lover, Kenneth Branagh, and said: "No-one else was involved."
The 33-year-old star said it was a joint decision between her and the actor-director, with whom she recently starred in forthcoming film The Theory Of Flight.
Bonham Carter last night attended a gala screening of the film Time Regained in London alone. Photographers were unable to raise a smile from her.
In a statement today, she said: "I am very sad to confirm that Kenneth Branagh and I are no longer together.
"The decision was mutual and no-one else was involved. Beyond that I have no further comment to make and I hope that the press will respect our privacy."
The pair became close when they worked on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, in 1994, which Branagh directed and in which he co-starred alongside Bonham Carter.
At the time Branagh, 38, was still married to his ex-wife Emma Thompson.
They later split, divorcing in 1996, and Thompson has moved in with actor Greg Wise, who appeared with her in Sense And Sensibility and was recently in ITV's drama series Wonderful You.
Wise and Oscar-winner Thompson are now expecting their first child.
Bonham Carter was seen for many years as a classic "English rose" because of her demure characters and early roles in period dramas like Howard's End and Room With A View.
But in recent years she has restyled her cascade of hair into a shorter, more glamorous style and had her first nude scene in The Wings Of The Dove.
Bonham Carter lived with her parents in north London until recently when she moved to a flat of her own nearby.
Earlier this month she said in a magazine interview: "I'm definitely happy and in love. I've had loves in the past, but this is the most long-lasting and grown-up."
Asked about how she and Branagh got on as they filmed together in The Theory Of Flight, she said it was "completely harmonious".
The film is due to be released in the UK next week.
Last month Branagh said: "Would I ever remarry? I've no idea. I've no fixed views on that, children, you name it.
He added: "I try to think no further than dinner or tea. That keeps me happy."
KEN TELLS HELENA IT'S ALL OVER
Daily Mail, 9/17/99
*thanks to Catherine KLove's labours are over between Kenneth Branagh and Helena Bonham Carter. Branagh, who has been putting the finishing touches to his all- singing, all-dancing version of Shakespeare's Love's Labours Lost, has told Helena that their five-year relationship is at an end.
She is, quite clearly, devastated.
When I saw the actress in Italy she seemed withdrawn and in no mood to reflect on the broken romance. 'It's irrelevant,' she sighed.
Helena had been in Venice for the world premiere of David Fincher's film The Fight Club, which is a ferocious examination of a post-war crisis of masculinity affecting young men. It's brilliantly made and acted, but I'm concerned about the violence - men beating the hell out of each other in cellars is excessive.
Under the protective wing of her mother Elena, a noted psychologist, Helena spent a few days 'recovering' elsewhere in Italy.
Branagh was working in the US, where he also received treatment for neck and back ailments that have plagued him for some time.
Helena occasionally shared Branagh's mansion in the Home Counties, but she also retained a small flat close to her parents' North London home.
Many thought the two thespians would marry, but Branagh - brilliant actor, film-maker and loyal friend that he is - has always had a wandering eye.
The ever-affable star became involved with Ms Bonham Carter, while still married to Oscar-winning actress and screen-writer Emma Thompson.
There were a string of 'other women' before and during his courtship of Ms Thompson. When they were married one prominent leading lady, tiring of his amorous advances, threatend to slap him if he didn't keep his hands to himself.
Ms Bonham Carter is celebrated in her own right for a string of 19th-century babe-in-corset roles, from Room With A View to her Oscar-nominated turn in The Wings of The Dove.
But, lately she has taken more contemporary parts, ranging from a Scottish mother in Rocket Pictures' Women Talking Dirty to a neurotic self-help addict in The Fight Club, which I have seen and predict will easily become the most hotly debated picture of the year.
Last night, Ms Bonham Carte's spokesperson in Los Angeles said she had nothing to comment on.
HELENA TELLS OF REGRET AS CURTAIN FALLS ON ROMANCE
Express, 9/17/99Actress Helena Bonham Carter told of her regret last night as she confirmed that her five-year romance with Kenneth Branagh was over.
The split was revealed earlier this week when she attended a London gala screening of the film Time Regained without her lover at her side, refusing to raise a smile and looking tired and drawn.
The couple began their affair in 1994 when they worked together on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Branagh, 38, was still married to actress Emma Thompson at the time. They divorced in 1996.
Helena, 33, insisted yesterday that no-one else was involved. "I am very sad to confirm that Kenneth Branagh and I are no longer together," she said. Appealing for privacy she added: "The decision was mutual. Beyond that I have no further comment ."
She made the statement despite reports suggesting it was Branagh's decision. Earlier this month she said in a magazine interview: "I'm definitely happy and in love. I've had loves in the past, but this is the most long-lasting and grown-up."
Asked about how she and Branagh got on as they worked together in The Theory Of Flight, due for release next week, she said it was "completely harmonious".
But last month Branagh said: "Would I ever re-marry? I've no idea. I've no fixed views on that, children, you name it. I try to think no further than dinner or tea. That keeps me happy." For years Bonham Carter took roles as a classic "English rose". But in recent years she has restyled herself, adopting a shorter hair cut and shooting her first nude scene in The Wings Of The Dove.She recently moved out of her parents' home in north London to live in a flat of her own nearby.
BONHAM CARTER 'SAD' ABOUT SPLIT
London Times, 9/17/99Helena Bonham Carter spoke about her sadness yesterday as she confirmed that she had separated from her lover, Kenneth Branagh, by mutual consent.
Despite reports that Mr Branagh, the actor and film director, had ended the relationship, Ms Bonham Carter said in a statement that it had been a joint decision and there was no one else involved.
The 33-year-old actress, who recently starred with Mr Branagh in the forthcoming film The Theory Of Flight, became close to him in 1994 when they worked on Frankenstein.
In her statement, she said: "I am very sad to confirm that Kenneth Branagh and I are no longer together. The decision was mutual and no one else was involved. Beyond that I have no further comment to make and I hope that the press will respect our privacy."
At the time of Frankenstein, Mr Branagh, 38, was still married to Emma Thompson. They later separated, divorcing in 1996.
Miss Thompson now lives with actor Greg Wise. They are expecting their first child.