british actor Damian Lewis has received the seal of approval from his new rock singer’s mother, who says she can’t wait to meet the Homeland star.
Fourteen months after the pain of losing his wife Helen McCrory Cancer, Lewis, 51, has been spotted on a string of dates with American musician and visual artist Alison Mosshart.
The pair met through friends while hanging out in London and have grown in love with each other, Mosshart’s mother Vivian, 76, has revealed.
Speaking exclusively to DailyMail.com from her home in FloridaVivian, 76, said: “I don’t know how much flak I’m going to get for all of this, but of course we’re excited for her.
“They have mutual friends. I’m not exactly sure how they met, but I’m fine with it. If she’s happy, we’re happy. I have yet to meet him, but I certainly would like to.’
British actor Damian Lewis, 51, has seen a number of dates with musician Alison Mosshart, 43 – 14 months after the death of his wife Helen McCrory
The new pair were recently spotted attending events in London together, including here at the National Portrait Gallery in London on June 23.
Lewis’ wife, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory, died in April last year at age 52 after a secret battle with breast cancer. They are pictured together in Leicester Square in 2019
Mosshart, 43, is the front woman of The Kills, the band she co-founded with guitarist Jamie Hince, Kate Moss’ ex-husband.
Also a member of the American supergroup The Dead Weather, formed by Jack White of The White Stripes, she splits her time between London, Los Angeles and Nashville and has never been married.
She and father of two Lewis were first photographed together last month at a swanky fundraising party for the National Gallery in London.
Alison is the front woman of The Kills, the band she founded with guitarist Jamie Hince
A fellow passenger who saw the couple traveling by train to the event told The Mail on Sunday that the two looked “100 percent romantically engaged, like they were on a hot date.”
Lewis and Mosshart were featured again last week at the Serpentine Gallery’s annual summer party, one of the highlights of the British capital’s social season.
And last weekend, the beloved couple were caught again at the British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone, with Mosshart posting on Instagram afterwards: ‘The absolute thrill. I’m still drifting… at 200 miles an hour.”
Lewis’ late wife, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory, died in April last year at the age of 52 after a secret battle with breast cancer. They have been married since 2007 and have two children.
Vivian said she was aware of the actor’s heartbreaking backstory, but was less familiar with his starring roles on hit shows such as Homeland, Band of Brothers and Billions, which starred Lewis as hedge fund titan Bobby Axelrod.
“I think I’ve seen Billions a few times, but normally we just watch movies. I’ve heard he has a new show, but I haven’t seen any of it,” she commented.
Mosshart grew up in Vero Beach, on the east coast of Florida, where her father Mark, 73, owns a car wholesaler aptly named Alison Auto Brokers.
Alison’s mother Vivian (pictured with her daughter and son Matthew) told DailyMail.com that the family is “excited” for her daughter and her newfound romance
Mosshart grew up in Vero Beach, on the east coast of Florida, with her brother Matthew, mother Vivian (pictured) and father Mark, 73 (right) who own a car wholesaler aptly named Alison Auto Brokers.
Alison’s brother Matthew Mosshart was previously engaged to Kelly Osbourne (above in 2012)
Her brother Matthew, 38, is an LA chef who was once in a relationship with Kelly Osbourne.
Vivian said her daughter, who performed under the stage name Baby Ruthless, had been into music at “nine months,” drummed in sixth grade and formed her own punk band when she was 11 or 12.
But she insisted that Mosshart should not be pigeonholed as a punk rock singer and be just as intellectual and skilled as the Eton-trained Lewis.
‘It is not easy to summarize. She’s a complicated, beautiful lady and very intelligent,” Vivian told DailyMail.com.
“She is so talented in so many areas that it constantly surprises us. We are actually surprised. We are very proud.’
Lewis announced the death of his beloved wife Helen in April last year, describing how his “beautiful and powerful wife” had lost her “heroic” battle with cancer.
‘She died as she lived. Fearless,” he wrote in a post on social media. “God, we love her and know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. She beamed so brightly. Now, little one, get up in the air.’
Thanks to her growing success with The Kills, Alison (above in 2016) became known for her eclectic fashion sense and was cited as a “style icon” by Alexa Chung in a 2010 Vogue article.
Success: Alison formed the band she would become most famous for – The Kills – with British guitarist Hince (left), who was engaged to Kate Moss (together right) in 2000
In a touching eulogy, Lewis went on to reveal how his late wife had urged him to find love again, telling him, their son Gulliver, 14, and daughter Manon, 15, not to dwell on her passing.
“Her generosity has extended to encouraging the three of us to live. Live to the fullest, seize opportunities, have adventures,” he wrote.
“She said to us from her bed, ‘I want daddy to have girlfriends, lots of them, you all need to love again, love is not possessive.’
“But you know, Damian, at least try to get through the funeral without kissing anyone.”
Lewis looked cheerful as he attended the Serpentine Gallery’s annual summer party with Alison late last month
Best known for playing gangland matriarch Polly Gray in Peaky Blinders, McCreary was also an award-winning stage actress, working with Britain’s National Theatre, the Almeida and the Donmar Warehouse, and playing Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare’s Globe.
She was “without a doubt one of the great actors of her generation,” said Rufus Norris, Artistic Director of the National Theater.