Stars who deserve an award for the VERY posh personas they've created - from Geri Halliwell's love of Tolstoy to Ellie Goulding's period drama accent

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From admiring the works of Delaroche and Tolstoy to whipping up cakes in the Aga of her countryside mansion, the girl from Watford has come along the way since singing 'zig-a-zig-ah' in a Union Jack dress so skimpy it exposed her underwear. 

With the help of Instagram, Geraldine Halliwell Horner, as Ginger Spice is now known, is almost unrecognisable from the wild 90s icon who rose to fame in The Spice Girls and has adopted a wardrobe of exclusively white clothing - the uniform of those wealthy enough not to worry about the dry cleaning bill. 

It's a world away from her beginnings as a Page 3 Girl before finding fame with the pop group, but she's certainly not the only star who has become posher with every passing year. 

For instance, Geordie child star Donna Air made sure to leave her Northern accent behind and is living very comfortably as a millionaire Chelsea girl who shares a daughter with millionaire conservationist Damian Aspinall and dated the future Queen's brother, James Middleton. 

In fact, a link to royalty is essential for cementing your upmarket credentials, and Geri has played a blinder with her role as an ambassador for The Prince's Trust, which affords her the opportunity to cosplay as the Princess of Wales at the annual Westminster Abbey service and be invited to Buckingham Palace. 

Similarly, Ellie Goulding who admitted she would never let her 'middle class' school friends back to her 'flea-ridden house', is now mingling with Princess Beatrice and Eugenie after her grand wedding to her now ex husband Caspar Jopling at York Minister. 

She will forever go down in British history for her iconic Union Jack dress. However Geri's hedonistic popstar days are now firmly behind her as she is now very settled in her countryside life (pictured L in 1997 and R last month) 

Geri Horner 

She will forever go down in British history for her iconic Union Jack dress. 

However Geri's hedonistic popstar days are now firmly behind her as she is now very settled in her countryside life. 

A source told Mail Plus that Geri has been 'ultra cautious with her image, trying so hard to shake off her brassy Ginger Spice past and transform herself into a wholesome Oxfordshire housewife'.

Turning her hand to baking, writing children's books and attending all manner of royal events.

She's worked her way into the very upper echelons of society by bonding with the Royal Family, thanks to her role as an ambassador for the Prince's Trust, now officially The King's Trust.

Whereas she raised eyebrows by telling the then Prince Charles he was 'very sexy' and seemingly pinching his bottom, she's now a regular at Commonwealth Day Celebrations and turns up in a suitably regal shift dress and headpiece - while keeping her hands and cheeky comments to herself.

With the help of Instagram, Geri Horner has managed to completely recreate her look and is almost unrecognisable from the wild 90s icon who rose to fame in The Spice Girls  

Mel B insisted the pair had a one-night stand during their time in the band, but joked Geri wouldn't admit it as she's 'all posh with her country house and her husband' (pictured 1997)

Back in 2022, Louis Walsh claimed Geri had 'gone all posh' as he asked podcast host Kate Thornton 'Have you seen her? She’s always very posh.'

The former X Factor judge joked: 'Hello? You’re from Watford, Geri!'

And he isn't the only one to notice her status shift after Mel B insisted the pair had a one-night stand during their time in the band.

Scary Spice said that Geri would be mad at her for disclosing the fling because 'she's all posh in her country house with her husband'. 

Appearing on Piers Morgan's Life Stories in 2019 she said: 'She is going to hate me for this because she is all posh with her country house and her husband, but it's a fact. But it wasn't a thing, it just happened and we just giggled at it and that was it.'

Geri has previously spoken about how she's happily swapped her wild ways for a more traditional housewife role.

Geri has previously spoken about how she's happily swapped her wild ways for a more traditional housewife role (pictured with Christian Horner in 2023)  

In keeping with the smart country set, Geri now indulges her love of horses and is regularly seen out riding and attending racing festivals 

She told the Daily Mail in 2015: 'I do cook for him, I do like to see that he's happy.

'When I go to the Formula 1 races, I'm not about all the glamour. I've been there and done that. I never thought I'd meet the man who I knew I would be with always. I can be myself with him, I can breathe out. I don't ever want to get divorced.

'I believe in equality but I'm proud to be a wife and this is me saying I believe in the union of marriage and everything that goes with it.'

But her lifestyle transformation hasn't always gone unnoticed as Geri raised eyebrows in 2016 when she appeared on and won Sport Relief Bake Off.

She got plenty of flack as some viewers on social media accused her of 'faking an upper class accent' despite her north London roots.

She accompanied her husband Christian to Buckingham Palace when he was made a Commander of the British Empire by King Charles last December

Donna Air 

Over the years Donna Air has made sure all traces of her Newcastle lilt have been completely eradicated, despite rising to fame as a Geordie child star. 

The actress, 45, was born in Wallsend, Newcastle Upon Tyne, the eldest of three children of bus mechanic Trevor and BT receptionist Marie.

She grew up in a small, two-bedroom terrace house in the working-class community of Gosforth and described herself as 'practically uneducated' as she left her comprehensive to attend local drama school at First Act Theatre. 

Aged ten, she starred in the popular Newcastle-based TV children’s series Byker Grove — where she was noted for her heavy Geordie accent. 

Yet since catching her big break as the child star, Donna has made sure to leave her working class image behind after she started mixing with the A-listers. 

Following the Byker Grove years, Donna became a linchpin of London’s trendy Primrose Hill set in the early 2000s, mixing with actress Sadie Frost, model Kate Moss and Oasis rockers Noel and Liam Gallagher. 

These were Donna’s anarchic years, during which she posed regularly in her underwear for lads’ magazines.

However all that changed when Donna was introduced to Damian Aspinall at a dinner in Knightsbridge restaurant San Lorenzo. 

Over the years Donna Air has made sure all traces of her Newcastle lilt have been completely eradicated, despite rising to fame as a Geordie child star (pictured L in 1999 and R in 2015) 

Through Aspinall — a casino heir, 20 years her senior, whose late father John had been a friend of Lord Lucan — Donna met various members of the Goldsmith clan and became friends with the Australian media heir James Packer.

Soon Donna was on the guest list for every high society event and was often seen mingling with Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

Her two-bedroom terrace is also distant memory as the star now lives in Kensington in West London. 

During the nineties she lived in Primrose Hill and had: ‘Noel and Liam Gallagher on my right and Zoe Ball on my left.’

By her early 20s, in 2001, after meeting Aspinall, she quickly moved into his magnificent house in Knightsbridge (its walls are lined with Warhols, Hockneys, Bacons and Hirsts) and in 2003 their daughter Freya was born.

At weekends, they would retire to the fully-staffed Howletts, near Canterbury, a gracious neo-Palladian mansion with its own 90-acre wildlife park (now complete with gorillas) that Damian’s father had bought in 1957.

When Donna split from Damian in 2007, she moved to West London, and now lives in a very smart townhouse in Chelsea with her daughter. 

Not one for cheap tastes, Donna admitted to liking a ‘high thread count’ on her bedsheets and owns several of her own Warhols now — one of which hangs above her bed.

Following the Byker Grove years, Donna became a linchpin of London’s trendy Primrose Hill set in the early 2000s

Through Aspinall — a casino heir, 20 years her senior, whose late father John had been a friend of Lord Lucan — Donna met various members of the Goldsmith clan (pictured 2006) 

She spends weekends with friends in the country or at hotels such as Babington House (owned by Soho House group, in Somerset) or Cliveden in Buckinghamshire.

Speaking in 2020 she said: 'After lockdown, I want to head straight to country house hotel Cliveden, in Berkshire, and possibly rent its Spring Cottage, an attractive summer house set in woods on the estate.

'When I’ve stayed in the past, I’ve had some wonderful garden parties and drinks on a river boat'

She also said of her home: 'I now live in Kensington in west London. I love it there – it’s very villagey and green.

'Hyde Park is in close proximity, and I go there a lot. I now know every square metre of it, and it feels like my park. It was such a blessing to have it so close during lockdown, and I’ve enjoyed endless walks there.

'Newcastle will always have a special place in my heart, but my favourite UK city is London, which is why I choose to live there. There’s really nowhere like it in the world, and it’s now as much my home as Newcastle.'

Ellie Goulding 

For a girl who grew up in a council house in a rural village a stone's throw from the Welsh borders, with barely two pennies to rub together, Ellie Goulding has come a long way.

Since leaving the village of Lyonshall, just outside Hereford, dropping out of university in her final year, and being signed by record label Polydor, she has carved out the kind of stratospheric success most young singers can only dream of.

Now mixing with the stars and royal princesses Ellie's life couldn't be further from her upbringing. 

Born on a council estate in Hereford, Herefordshire to her mum Tracey and her funeral director father Arthur, the singer's parents split when Ellie was just five.

The star, who has a brother, Alex, and two sisters, Isabel and Jordan, described her upbringing as 'super poor' and branded her relationship with her mum 'difficult'.

She said: 'I didn't have the best childhood. We grew up in the smallest house. Moth-eaten, flea-ridden furniture with holes in it was handed down from my nana.'

In a heartbreaking memory, Ellie recalled visits from bailiffs, who took away the family television one afternoon over unpaid bills.

Speaking to Elle Magazine in 2015, Ellie said: 'I wasn't a happy child. I felt different to everyone else. I'd separate everything...

Since her hits have soared in the charts, she has earned her a plethora of awards and completely change the social circles she mixes in (pictured at the BRITS in 2010) 

She previously said: 'I didn't have the best childhood. We grew up in the smallest house. Moth-eaten, flea-ridden furniture with holes in it was handed down from my nana' (pictured in 2010) 

In an astounding accolade for the star, Prince William and Kate asked her to perform her version of Your Song for the first dance at their 2011 wedding reception (pictured in 2022)  

'I'd have friends from my council estate and then these middle-class friends from school who I'd never let come back to my house...

'I was a classic angsty teenager. I was unhappy. I didn't like my stepfather because he just wasn't very nice to any of us. He wasn't horrible, he just wasn't interested.'

She's even admitted to training her voice to sound posher by listening to BBC newsreader Nicholas Witchell and watching period dramas.

'I became fixated on speaking well. I felt like people just knew I was from a council house, and that I was poor, because of the way I spoke,' she said.

Speaking to Grazia in 2014, she said she was 'obsessed' with posh accents, saying: 'I was obsessed with well-spoken people, period dramas and the news.

'I got clued into how I could change my singing voice from Destiny's Child to opera, so I learned I could change my speaking voice, too.'

Ellie, who described her original accent as 'quite Bristolian', said she now regrets perfecting her sophisticated accent.

In a 2013 interview she said: 'I feel silly because I'm not ashamed of the Hereford accent now and it's too late to get it back.'

Ellie's love of music flourished when she started writing songs at 15, having been learning the clarinet since nine and guitar since 14.

Her big break then came at an open mic talent show where she met her manager, Jamie Lillywhite, the son of producer Steve Lillywhite and the late singer Kirsty MacColl. She signed a record deal with Polydor and quit university in her final year.

And since her hits have soared in the charts, earned her a plethora of awards, and allowed her to completely change the social circles she mixes in. 

In an astounding accolade for the star, Prince William and Kate asked her to perform her version of Your Song for the first dance at their 2011 wedding reception where she also met Prince Harry, leading to a reported romance. 

They were spotted cosying up at the Audi Polo Challenge in May 2016 and reportedly exchanged flirty texts. A source told The Sun at the time: 'He has told friends how much he likes Ellie and she is clearly taken by him.' 

Elsewhere, she is also pals with 'former flame' Harry's cousins Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, through her charity work helping the homeless.

She also had a rumoured romance with Prince Harry after they were spotted cosying up at the Audi Polo Challenge in May 2016 and reportedly exchanged flirty texts (pictured in 2014)

After being linked to Prince Harry, she then met Eton and Oxford-educated art dealer husband Caspar, who she started dating in 2017 and tied the knot two years later (pictured in 2023)

The star has also had her fair share of high-profile relationships including Radio 1's Greg James, DJ Skrillex, Jeremy Irvine, Niall Horan and McFly's Dougie Poynter. 

After being linked to Prince Harry, she then met Eton and Oxford-educated art dealer husband Caspar, who she started dating in 2017 and tied the knot two years later in a romantic ceremony at York Minster.

The reception for the swanky wedding was at Yorkshire’s Castle Howard attended by guests including royal pals, and stars including Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom.

They welcomed Arthur in 2021 before confirming their split in February 2024. 

It was reported in the build up to their split that Ellie had a found an unexpected ally in millionaire Tory peer Zac Goldsmith – with sources saying the pair are 'friendly.'

The two have maintained an unlikely bond over their shared love of green issues, despite their wildly different upbringings.

Zac is the Eton-educated son of late billionaire financier Sir James Goldsmith in stark contrast to her council estate upbringing. 

She is also pals with 'former flame' Harry's cousins Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie (pictured in 2016), through her charity work helping the homeless

Ellie pictured with Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in April 2024

It was reported in the build up to their split that Ellie had a found an unexpected ally in millionaire Tory peer Zac Goldsmith (pictured with his then wife Alice Rothschild in 2022) 

Toni Terry

She was one of the original WAG bunch who tore up Baden Baden at the 2006 World Cup, alongside Coleen Rooney, Cheryl Cole and Alex Gerrard.

Yet almost two decade later Toni Terry has carefully cultivated a new image for herself that's a world away from the brash blonde hair and flashy WAG fashion that was the uniform of the day, in favour of a sleek 'stealth wealth' look.

Toni has dated John Terry from the age of 16, when he was a year older and an apprentice footballer on £48-a-week still living with his family in an estate in Barking, East London.

Yet now she has forged her own path in the limelight as a both as a professional dressage horse rider and workout-obsessed 'fitfluencer'.

Her personal style has evolved over the years with her recent ensembles in stark contrast to how she dressed during her WAG years.

Toni has dated John Terry from the age of 16, when he was a year older and an apprentice footballer on £48-a-week still living with his family in an estate in Barking (Pictured in 2009)

Yet almost two decade later Toni Terry has carefully cultivated a new image for herself that's a world away from the brash blonde hair and flashy WAG fashion that was the uniform of the day 

Toni has previously admitted that she 'hated' pictures of herself next to other WAGs and felt immense pressure to lose weight following the birth of her two children

She has ditched the cropped bralettes, ruffled dresses and hotpants of the 2000s in exchange for country chic, glamorous gowns and tailored coats.

Toni has previously admitted that she 'hated' pictures of herself next to other WAGs and felt immense pressure to lose weight following the birth of her two children.

Speaking to The Sun in 2018, Toni, who gave birth to twins Georgie and Summer in 2006, said: 'Everyone else seemed to look amazing but I hated all the pictures I saw of me.

'Perhaps I should have been easier on myself — I had just had twins, after all — but this was the slightly insane world I lived in and the pressure was immense. That was the trigger for me to change my body for ever. With the support of John, both of us are very happy indeed.'

Toni was inspired to transform her look and she threw herself into the world of fitness which she documents on her Instagram. 

Embracing her 'millionaire wife' image, Toni is also regularly spotted enjoying trips on private jets, adorned in designer accessories and heading for cosy breaks in the countryside. 

Toni is also a keen horsewoman, having worked professionally as a dressage rider since 2010 - with a brief hiatus between 2016 and 2020. 

As she returned to dressage in 2021, Toni moved her passion for horses online as she created an Instagram page where she updates fans on the competitions she competes in and shares clips from her rides. 

She has ditched the cropped bralettes, ruffled dresses and hotpants of the 2000s (Pictured in 2006)

Toni is also a keen horse-rider, having worked professionally as a Dressage Rider since 2010 - with a brief hiatus between 2016 and 2020

Elizabeth Hurley 

Elizabeth Hurley is another star who has cultivated her own image and actively changed her accent to sound posher. 

Born in Aldershot, Hampshire to parents Roy and Angela her father was a captain in the Royal Army Educational Corps, while her mother was a music teacher. 

Writing in her book, Elizabeth's biographer Alison Bowyer penned: 'Elizabeth Hurley both looks and speaks the part of an upper-class girl from the Home Counties.

'But the image is an illusion. Weekends in country houses and expensive Swiss finishing schools were not on the agenda for the young Elizabeth. 

'Her ancestors had been housemaids in such houses, and home for Liz Hurley was a modest bungalow.'

Yet in 1983 the star left Basingstoke for London and got her first break at 21 when she was picked for a tour of West Asia in The Man Most Likely To theatre show. 

It was from there she began to develop her taste for luxury hotels and perfected the image of a Sloaney girl from Kensington. 

She no longer wanted to be called Liz, but instead Elizabeth. 

Elizabeth Hurley is another star who has cultivated her own image and actively changed her accent to sound posher (pictured last month) 

Writing in her book, Elizabeth's biographer Alison Bowyer penned: 'Elizabeth Hurley both looks and speaks the part of an upper-class girl from the Home Counties' (pictured in 1983) 

Born in Aldershot, Hampshire to parents Roy and Angela her father was a captain in the Royal Army Educational Corps, while her mother was a music teacher (pictured in 1983) 

And it wasn't long before she was catapulted to new heights of fame after she began dating Hugh Grant in 1987. 

The couple made headlines when they stepped out for the 1994 Four Weddings And A Funeral premiere with Elizabeth dressed in her famous £3,000 Versace safety pin dress. 

Elizabeth became a household name overnight thanks to the extravagant couture gown, manufactured from a mix of black silk and Lycra, held together with oversized safety pins and borrowed from the Versace flagship store on Old Bond Street. 

The actress even took the Tube to pick up her notorious black Versace number held together with large gold safety pieces.

She said: 'I’d never heard the name Versace before and it looked pretty precarious.

'But I remember touching my toes and stretching up in it, and nothing moved, so I galloped down the stairs and that was that.'

She adds: 'The next day we were on the front page of every newspaper and I’m like, "What the hell is this?".

'I hadn’t really realised how daring a dress it was.'

Since her split from Hugh in 2000, the star went on to welcome son Damian with late businessman Steve Bing in 2002.

Elizabeth married millionaire businessman Arun Nayar in 2007 and they were together for four years until their split. 

She disclosed their split in December 2010 after she was photographed kissing the late cricketer Shane Warne. 

Elizabeth made headlines when she stepped out for the 1994 Four Weddings And A Funeral premiere with Hugh Grant dressed in her famous £3,000 Versace safety pin dress 

Since her split from Hugh in 2000, the star went on to welcome son Damian with late businessman Steve Bing in 2002 (pictured with Damian last month)

Elizabeth also has a longtime friendship with Sir Elton John, who is the godfather to her son Damian 

Shane popped the question to the Austin Powers actress in September 2011, but they sadly split in 2013.

Elizabeth also has a longtime friendship with Sir Elton John, who is the godfather to her son Damian.

Their close friendship saw Sir Elton deliver a moving speech during her wedding to millionaire businessman Arun Nayar in 2007, in which he referred to her as his 'daughter'. 

He said he couldn't be more fond and proud of her, the most 'lovable and beautiful girl one could meet'.

Judge Rinder 

Known for his posh accent, Rob Rinder shocked fans when he revealed his 'real voice' live on Loose Women earlier this year (pictured October 2022) 

Rob Rinder grew up in th e north London suburb of Southgate, where his dad drove a black cab and his mum launched a publishing business from her bedroom

Known for his posh accent, Rob Rinder shocked fans when he revealed his 'real voice' live on Loose Women earlier this year. 

Discussing accents on the ITV daytime show, the TV personality turned to Janet Street-Porter and said: 'One of the things you've talked about is that when you first came into the room, years ago, because you sounded a certain way...' 

Janet then responded, 'People were horrible, they'd make assumptions!'

Robert went on to discuss his own accent and how it has changed, revealing, 'This is total artifice!'

He added: 'When I was three-years-old I lived around the corner from Amy Winehouse, nobody sounded like me!' 

Rob Rinder grew up in the north London suburb of Southgate, where his dad drove a black cab and his mum launched a publishing business from her bedroom. 

The panellists then asked how he really sounded, so Rob demonstrated a different accent to his usual persona as he quipped in a North London accent: 'You alright everybody, welcome to Loose Women!'