In a room full of celebrities, Katherine Ryan only had eyes for one man: Professor Stephen Hawking. But it wasn’t meant to be.
The comedian confessed she ‘tried it on’ with the late theoretical physicist only to be rebuffed by his assistant, who claimed his ‘tablet died’. Ouch.
Katherine, 41, was at a lavish party thrown by long-time friend and collaborator Jimmy Carr, dubbing him ‘the London Gatsby’.
She recalled mingling with the likes of Kourtney Kardashian and Woody Harrelson at the glitzy bash, but it was Stephen she wanted to get to know.
‘Well before Jimmy Carr’s children were born, he used to have the most amazing parties,’ she told Ashley Stobart and Lauren Adamson on their Nip Tuck Podcast.
‘Like Brandon Flowers would be there,’ she name-dropped. ‘Woody Harrelson would be there, Professor Stephen Hawking, Monica Lewinsky.
‘I met Kourtney Kardashian in Jimmy Carr’s living room. He’s like the London Gatsby. It was really fun.’
Ashley questioned if Stephen had tried it on with Katherine but the comedian clarified she was the one who was pursuing the romance.
‘I tried it on with him because I saw in the film about him that he’s kind of a ladies man,’ the Duchess star explained.
‘But then, quite hurtfully, he just kind of went quiet, and then his assistant came up and said, “Oh, I’m sorry the professor’s tablet has run out of battery. He can’t talk to you anymore”.’
That could have been a reasonable explanation, but keen Katherine was not about to take the excuse at face value.
‘I was mugged off and I know it,’ she continued. ‘He truly is a genius, but then I googled it and there’s a backup battery for the tablet in the chairs
‘So if the chair is moving, the battery is working.’
Katherine has since entered a civil partnership with Bobby Kootstra, her childhood sweetheart, in 2019.
They have a son called Fred, three, a daughter named Fenna, two, as well as 15-year-old daughter Violet from the comedian’s previous relationship.
Stephen, who died in 2018 aged 76, had three children — Lucy, Robert and Timothy Hawking — with ex-wife Jane Wilde.
They married in 1965 but divorced 30 years later with Stephen then marrying his nurse, Elaine Mason but they split in 2006.
Katherine has previously opened up on her hopes to expand her brood but admitted time is not on her side.
In TV show At Home With Katherine Ryan, she said: ‘It’s not that surprising that over-40 women have fewer follicles than we once did.
‘But we talk a lot about male fertility as well, which is on a steep decline. But I would still like a fourth baby.
‘We are so blessed to have the kids that we do have. Having children is not for everyone, but I personally really like making people. I think it’s a superpower, if you can do it.’
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