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On 25 March 2010, just weeks before it was due to close, Lebedev bought ''[[The Independent]]'' and ''[[The Independent on Sunday]]''. On 26 October, the ''[[i (newspaper)|i]]'' newspaper was launched, the first national daily newspaper to be launched in the UK since ''The Independent'' in 1986, at a time of falling newspaper circulations and title closures.<ref>[http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23819111-evening-standard-owner-alexander-lebedev-buys-independent.do "Lebedev family buys Independent in deal to secure paper's future"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327044239/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23819111-evening-standard-owner-alexander-lebedev-buys-independent.do |date=27 March 2010 }}, ''London Evening Standard'' website</ref> In 2011, he launched The Journalism Foundation, to promote "free and independent journalism throughout the world", although it was closed down after a year.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2012/feb/10/journalism-education-tunisia |title=Journalism Foundation gets its first project off the ground |last=Greenslade |first=Roy |date=10 February 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=29 February 2016}}</ref>
On 25 March 2010, just weeks before it was due to close, Lebedev bought ''[[The Independent]]'' and ''[[The Independent on Sunday]]''. On 26 October, the ''[[i (newspaper)|i]]'' newspaper was launched, the first national daily newspaper to be launched in the UK since ''The Independent'' in 1986, at a time of falling newspaper circulations and title closures.<ref>[http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23819111-evening-standard-owner-alexander-lebedev-buys-independent.do "Lebedev family buys Independent in deal to secure paper's future"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327044239/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23819111-evening-standard-owner-alexander-lebedev-buys-independent.do |date=27 March 2010 }}, ''London Evening Standard'' website</ref> In 2011, he launched The Journalism Foundation, to promote "free and independent journalism throughout the world", although it was closed down after a year.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2012/feb/10/journalism-education-tunisia |title=Journalism Foundation gets its first project off the ground |last=Greenslade |first=Roy |date=10 February 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=29 February 2016}}</ref>


In February 2016, it was announced that Independent Press Ltd had reached an agreement to sell the ''i'' to [[Johnston Press]], and that ''The Independent'' would become digital-only from March 2016.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/the-independent-becomes-the-first-national-newspaper-to-embrace-a-global-digital-only-future-a6869736.html|title=The Independent will become the first national newspaper to go digital-only|date=12 February 2016|website=The Independent|access-date=23 December 2019}}</ref> In 2019, it was reported that Lebedev sold a 30% stake in the publications to a private Saudi investor. {{citation needed|date=March 2022}} After a second regulator concluded no investigation was necessary, [[Ofcom]] judged that the sale had not led to "any influence" on the news outlets controlled by the British-Russian businessman.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.ft.com/content/dc0e6050-d891-11e9-8f9b-77216ebe1f17 |title=Government ends probe of Evening Standard stake sale |date=16 September 2019 |work=Financial Times |url-access=subscription |access-date=1 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/independent-and-standard-vindicated-by-ofcom-report-into-saudi-investor-deals-says-owner/ |title=Independent and Standard 'vindicated' by Ofcom report into Saudi investor deals, says owner |last=Mayhew |first=Freddy |date=16 September 2019 |website=Press Gazette}}</ref>
In February 2016, it was announced that Independent Press Ltd had reached an agreement to sell the ''i'' to [[Johnston Press]], and that ''The Independent'' would become digital-only from March 2016.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/the-independent-becomes-the-first-national-newspaper-to-embrace-a-global-digital-only-future-a6869736.html|title=The Independent will become the first national newspaper to go digital-only|date=12 February 2016|website=The Independent|access-date=23 December 2019}}</ref> In 2019, it was reported that Lebedev sold a 30% stake in the publications to a private Saudi investor. {{Citation needed|date=March 2022}} After a second regulator concluded no investigation was necessary, [[Ofcom]] judged that the sale had not led to "any influence" on the news outlets controlled by the British-Russian businessman.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.ft.com/content/dc0e6050-d891-11e9-8f9b-77216ebe1f17 |title=Government ends probe of Evening Standard stake sale |date=16 September 2019 |work=Financial Times |url-access=subscription |access-date=1 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/independent-and-standard-vindicated-by-ofcom-report-into-saudi-investor-deals-says-owner/ |title=Independent and Standard 'vindicated' by Ofcom report into Saudi investor deals, says owner |last=Mayhew |first=Freddy |date=16 September 2019 |website=Press Gazette}}</ref>


==Other business interests, real estate, and political influence==
==Other business interests, real estate, and political influence==
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''[[The Sunday Times]]'' reported that security services were uneasy over Lebedev from 2013 and Lebedev's father was a KGB agent.<ref name="Times MI6">{{cite news |last1=Urwin |first1=Harry Yorke, Gabriel Pogrund and Rosamund |title=How Boris Johnson’s friendship with Evgeny Lebedev deepened despite MI6 concerns |url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/how-boris-johnsons-friendship-with-evgeny-lebedev-deepened-despite-mi6-concerns-56bl5hklb |access-date=17 March 2022 |work=The Sunday Times |language=en}}</ref> SNP leader [[Ian Blackford]] wanted Lebedev's parliamentary pass revoked due to these concerns.<ref name="Lord Speaker">[https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/mar/15/lord-speaker-urges-ministers-to-tighten-system-for-vetting-peers Lord Speaker urges tougher vetting amid concerns over Evgeny Lebedev] ''[[The Guardian]]''. 15 March 2022</ref> House of Lords speaker [[Lord McFall]] said the procedure for vetting new peers should be tightened up.<ref name="Lord Speaker"/> ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote, "Johnson has been accused of brushing off security concerns about Lebedev, which whom he has a close relationship, attending parties at his Italian castle, including when he was foreign secretary."<ref name="Lord Speaker"/> Lebedev has stated that he is not a security risk and is "proud to be a British citizen and consider Britain my home". He said his father "spent his time campaigning against corruption and illegal financial dealings" and his family "has a record of standing up for press freedom" in Russia.<ref name="Lebedev1"/>
''[[The Sunday Times]]'' reported that security services were uneasy over Lebedev from 2013 and Lebedev's father was a KGB agent.<ref name="Times MI6">{{cite news |last1=Urwin |first1=Harry Yorke, Gabriel Pogrund and Rosamund |title=How Boris Johnson’s friendship with Evgeny Lebedev deepened despite MI6 concerns |url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/how-boris-johnsons-friendship-with-evgeny-lebedev-deepened-despite-mi6-concerns-56bl5hklb |access-date=17 March 2022 |work=The Sunday Times |language=en}}</ref> SNP leader [[Ian Blackford]] wanted Lebedev's parliamentary pass revoked due to these concerns.<ref name="Lord Speaker">[https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/mar/15/lord-speaker-urges-ministers-to-tighten-system-for-vetting-peers Lord Speaker urges tougher vetting amid concerns over Evgeny Lebedev] ''[[The Guardian]]''. 15 March 2022</ref> House of Lords speaker [[Lord McFall]] said the procedure for vetting new peers should be tightened up.<ref name="Lord Speaker"/> ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote, "Johnson has been accused of brushing off security concerns about Lebedev, which whom he has a close relationship, attending parties at his Italian castle, including when he was foreign secretary."<ref name="Lord Speaker"/> Lebedev has stated that he is not a security risk and is "proud to be a British citizen and consider Britain my home". He said his father "spent his time campaigning against corruption and illegal financial dealings" and his family "has a record of standing up for press freedom" in Russia.<ref name="Lebedev1"/>


''The Guardian'' described Lebedev as "a surprise name among the 36 life peerage nominations which have led to accusations of 'cronyism' against the prime minister".<ref name="guardianpeer">{{cite news |author=Simon Murphy and Jim Waterson|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jul/31/evgeny-lebedev-jo-johnson-and-ian-botham-among-36-peerage-nominations-boris |title=Evgeny Lebedev, Jo Johnson and Ian Botham among 36 peerage nominations |date=31 July 2020 |access-date=31 July 2020 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> [[Mark Galeotti]] wrote that the move indicated Johnson's eagerness "to show contempt for [[British intelligence agencies|Britain's intelligence agencies]]."<ref name="MTgaleotti">{{cite news |last=Galeotti |first=Mark |author-link=Mark Galeotti |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/08/03/lebedevs-peerage-highlights-londons-need-to-address-russian-influence-a71041 |title=Lebedev's Peerage Highlights London's Need to Address Russian Influence |date=4 August 2020 |access-date=4 August 2020 |work=[[The Moscow Times]]}}</ref> [[Dominic Cummings]] said that Boris Johnson was warned of security concerns.<ref name="Cummings">{{cite news |title=Boris Johnson was warned of Lebedev security concerns, says Cummings |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60765665 |access-date=17 March 2022 |work=BBC News |date=16 March 2022}}</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote in 2022, "nobody is a better example of the cozy ties between Russians and the [British] establishment than Mr. Lebedev."<ref name=":0" />
''The Guardian'' described Lebedev as "a surprise name among the 36 life peerage nominations which have led to accusations of 'cronyism' against the prime minister".<ref name="guardianpeer">{{cite news |author=Simon Murphy and Jim Waterson|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jul/31/evgeny-lebedev-jo-johnson-and-ian-botham-among-36-peerage-nominations-boris |title=Evgeny Lebedev, Jo Johnson and Ian Botham among 36 peerage nominations |date=31 July 2020 |access-date=31 July 2020 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> [[Mark Galeotti]] wrote that the move indicated Johnson's eagerness "to show contempt for [[British intelligence agencies|Britain's intelligence agencies]]."<ref name="MTgaleotti">{{cite news |last=Galeotti |first=Mark |author-link=Mark Galeotti |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/08/03/lebedevs-peerage-highlights-londons-need-to-address-russian-influence-a71041 |title=Lebedev's Peerage Highlights London's Need to Address Russian Influence |date=4 August 2020 |access-date=4 August 2020 |work=[[The Moscow Times]]}}</ref> [[Dominic Cummings]] said that Boris Johnson was warned of security concerns.<ref name="Cummings">{{cite news |title=Boris Johnson was warned of Lebedev security concerns, says Cummings |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60765665 |access-date=17 March 2022 |work=BBC News |date=16 March 2022}}</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote in 2022, "nobody is a better example of the cozy ties between Russians and the [British] establishment than Mr. Lebedev."<ref name=":0" />


As of March 2022, Lebedev has spoken only once in the Lords. After this was reported, he asked two parliamentary questions.<ref name="Lord Speaker"/>
As of March 2022, Lebedev has spoken only once in the Lords. After this was reported, he asked two parliamentary questions.<ref name="Lord Speaker"/>
Line 78: Line 78:


== Personal life ==
== Personal life ==
According to ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'', Lebedev previously dated British actress [[Joely Richardson]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/actors/joely-richardson-interview/ |title=Joely Richardson interview: 'Work saved me from my grief' |last=Williams |first=Sally |date=4 October 2015 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=1 August 2020 |url-access=limited}}</ref> While he denies rumours about him being gay, which earnt him the nickname "Two Beards"{{efn|See [[Beard (companion)]]}} coined by ''[[Private Eye]]'', he is said not to mind people thinking so, according to media reports.<ref name="spectatorstrange">{{cite magazine|author=Freddy Gray|url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-strange-world-of-evgeny-lebedev |title=The strange world of Evgeny Lebedev | magazine=The Spectator|date=26 September 2015}}</ref>
According to ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'', Lebedev previously dated British actress [[Joely Richardson]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/actors/joely-richardson-interview/ |title=Joely Richardson interview: 'Work saved me from my grief' |last=Williams |first=Sally |date=4 October 2015 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=1 August 2020 |url-access=limited}}</ref> While he denies rumours about him being gay, which earned him the nickname "Two Beards"{{efn|See [[Beard (companion)]]}} coined by ''[[Private Eye]]'', he is said not to mind people thinking so, according to media reports.<ref name="spectatorstrange">{{cite magazine|author=Freddy Gray|url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-strange-world-of-evgeny-lebedev |title=The strange world of Evgeny Lebedev | magazine=The Spectator|date=26 September 2015}}</ref>


Lord Lebedev collects modern British art, and owns pieces by [[Tracey Emin]], [[Sir Antony Gormley]], [[Damien Hirst]], [[Francis Bacon (artist)|Francis Bacon]], [[Lucian Freud]] and [[Jake and Dinos Chapman]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2f5dee48-d6c5-11e4-a99f-00144feab7de.html |title=Evgeny Lebedev, Britain's youngest newspaper proprietor |last=Sunyer |first=John |date=2 April 2015 |newspaper=Financial Times |access-date=1 August 2020 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> According to the ''[[New Statesman]]'', he also has a wide knowledge of [[Renaissance art]] and [[Vorticism|vorticist poetry]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elmhirst |first=Sophie |date=1 July 2011 |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/newspapers/2011/07/lebedev-russia-london-paper |title=Oligarch, reinvented |newspaper=New Statesman |access-date=1 August 2020}}</ref> He had a pet wolf called Boris, named after the former Russian President [[Boris Yeltsin]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2012/may/05/evgeny-lebedev-evening-standard-oligarch |title=Evgeny Lebedev: Don't call me an oligarch |last=Hatterstone |first=Simon |date=4 May 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=29 February 2016}}</ref>
Lord Lebedev collects modern British art, and owns pieces by [[Tracey Emin]], [[Sir Antony Gormley]], [[Damien Hirst]], [[Francis Bacon (artist)|Francis Bacon]], [[Lucian Freud]] and [[Jake and Dinos Chapman]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2f5dee48-d6c5-11e4-a99f-00144feab7de.html |title=Evgeny Lebedev, Britain's youngest newspaper proprietor |last=Sunyer |first=John |date=2 April 2015 |newspaper=Financial Times |access-date=1 August 2020 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> According to the ''[[New Statesman]]'', he also has a wide knowledge of [[Renaissance art]] and [[Vorticism|vorticist poetry]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elmhirst |first=Sophie |date=1 July 2011 |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/newspapers/2011/07/lebedev-russia-london-paper |title=Oligarch, reinvented |newspaper=New Statesman |access-date=1 August 2020}}</ref> He had a pet wolf called Boris, named after the former Russian President [[Boris Yeltsin]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2012/may/05/evgeny-lebedev-evening-standard-oligarch |title=Evgeny Lebedev: Don't call me an oligarch |last=Hatterstone |first=Simon |date=4 May 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=29 February 2016}}</ref>
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{{Commons category}}
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website|evgenylebedev.com}}
* {{Official website|evgenylebedev.com}}



{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}

Revision as of 12:13, 3 April 2022

This article is about a Russian-businessman. For the Russian actor, see Yevgeni Lebedev.

In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Alexandrovich and the family name is Lebedev.
The Right Honourable
The Lord Lebedev
File:Evgeny-Lebedev-1-GQ-2sep13 rex b 320x480 1.jpg
Lebedev in 2013
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Assumed office
17 December 2020
Life peerage
Personal details
Born
Evgeny Alexandrovich Lebedev

(1980-05-08) 8 May 1980 (age 44)
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (now Russia)
NationalityRussian and British
ParentAlexander Lebedev
RelativesVladimir Sokolov (grandfather)
Residence(s)London, England
Education

Evgeny Alexandrovich Lebedev, Baron Lebedev[1] (Russian: Евгений Александрович Лебедев, romanized: Evgeniy Aleksandrovich Lebedev,[a] pronounced [ɪ̯ɪvˈɡʲenʲɪɪ̯ ˈlʲebʲɪdʲɪf]; born 8 May 1980), is a Russian-British businessman, who owns Lebedev Holdings Ltd, which in turn owns the Evening Standard, The Independent and the TV channel London Live. He derives his wealth from his father, Alexander Lebedev, who is a Russian oligarch and former KGB officer.[3][4][5]

In July 2020, Lebedev was nominated for a life peerage by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for philanthropy and services to the media, a move that drew criticism.[6][7][8] British security services warned that granting Lebedev a peerage posed a national security risk, but Johnson went ahead with it despite the security service assessment.[9] Lebedev has stated that he is not a security risk and his family "has a record of standing up for press freedom" in Russia.[8] Lebedev has sat in the House of Lords as a crossbench life peer since 19 November 2020.[10]

Early life and education

Born in Moscow, Lebedev is the son of Alexander Lebedev, a Russian banker and former officer of the First Chief Directorate of the USSR's KGB and later its successor, the SVR, and his first wife, engineer Natalia Sokolova; his maternal grandfather Vladimir Sokolov was a scientist, and a member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, later the Russian Academy of Sciences.

He moved to London at the age of eight, when his father began working at the KGB rezidentura in the Soviet Embassy. He attended St Barnabas and St Philip's Church of England Primary School in Kensington, followed by Holland Park Comprehensive School and Mill Hill School. He studied the history of art at Christie's in London. He has lived in the UK ever since, and became a British citizen (with dual nationality) in 2010.[11][12]

Media interests

On 21 January 2009, Evgeny and his father bought a 65% share in the Evening Standard newspaper.[13] The previous owners, Daily Mail and General Trust plc, continue to hold 24.9% of the company.[14] Under the Lebedevs' ownership, it became a free newspaper in October 2009; circulation tripled immediately to 700,000.[15]

On 25 March 2010, just weeks before it was due to close, Lebedev bought The Independent and The Independent on Sunday. On 26 October, the i newspaper was launched, the first national daily newspaper to be launched in the UK since The Independent in 1986, at a time of falling newspaper circulations and title closures.[16] In 2011, he launched The Journalism Foundation, to promote "free and independent journalism throughout the world", although it was closed down after a year.[17]

In February 2016, it was announced that Independent Press Ltd had reached an agreement to sell the i to Johnston Press, and that The Independent would become digital-only from March 2016.[18] In 2019, it was reported that Lebedev sold a 30% stake in the publications to a private Saudi investor. [citation needed] After a second regulator concluded no investigation was necessary, Ofcom judged that the sale had not led to "any influence" on the news outlets controlled by the British-Russian businessman.[19][20]

Other business interests, real estate, and political influence

Lebedev co-owns The Grapes, a riverside pub in Limehouse, London, with Sir Ian McKellen and Sean Mathias.[21] In 2012 he purchased the hotel Château Gütsch in Lucerne, Switzerland, and commissioned Martyn Lawrence Bullard to renovate it.[22] He later sold it to Kirill Androsov.

He has been reported to own a flat in central London near Regent's Park as well as the Grade II-listed mansion Stud House in the grounds of Hampton Court Palace, and two large properties within 11 miles (18 km) of each other, in the Umbrian countryside, Italy.[23][24]

He had maintained friendship with Boris Johnson since the late 2000s,[25] with Lebedev's Evening Standard going all out in support of Johnson as the Mayor of London.[23] Johnson has been reported to have attended vodka and caviar parties hosted by Alexander and Evgeny Lebedev in the UK and Italy throughout the 2010s.[25] According to Byline Times, their relationship caused concern in the UK's security circles who assessed both Johnson and Lebedev as security risks.[23] In March 2020, the House of Lords Appointments Commission (Holac), contacted the prime minister advising against Lebedev's peerage. Byline Times reported that the evaluation of Evgeny Lebedev as a security risk changed in June 2020, the decision allegedly having been pushed through by Cabinet Office officials.[26][27]

Peerage

In July 2020, he was nominated for a life peerage by prime minister Johnson in the 2020 Political Honours.[28] Lebedev has sat in the House of Lords as a crossbench life peer since 19 November 2020[10] with the title Baron Lebedev, of Hampton in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and of Siberia in the Russian Federation.[29] Lebedev was supported at his House of Lords introduction ceremony by Lord Clarke and Lord Bird.[30] He made his maiden speech during the Queen's speech debate on 12 May 2021.[31]

The Sunday Times reported that security services were uneasy over Lebedev from 2013 and Lebedev's father was a KGB agent.[32] SNP leader Ian Blackford wanted Lebedev's parliamentary pass revoked due to these concerns.[33] House of Lords speaker Lord McFall said the procedure for vetting new peers should be tightened up.[33] The Guardian wrote, "Johnson has been accused of brushing off security concerns about Lebedev, which whom he has a close relationship, attending parties at his Italian castle, including when he was foreign secretary."[33] Lebedev has stated that he is not a security risk and is "proud to be a British citizen and consider Britain my home". He said his father "spent his time campaigning against corruption and illegal financial dealings" and his family "has a record of standing up for press freedom" in Russia.[8]

The Guardian described Lebedev as "a surprise name among the 36 life peerage nominations which have led to accusations of 'cronyism' against the prime minister".[34] Mark Galeotti wrote that the move indicated Johnson's eagerness "to show contempt for Britain's intelligence agencies."[35] Dominic Cummings said that Boris Johnson was warned of security concerns.[36] The New York Times wrote in 2022, "nobody is a better example of the cozy ties between Russians and the [British] establishment than Mr. Lebedev."[3]

As of March 2022, Lebedev has spoken only once in the Lords. After this was reported, he asked two parliamentary questions.[33]

The Labour Party tabled a House of Commons motion that would force the government to reveal security advice over the peerage. A number of Conservative MP's support this motion and it might succeed.[37]

Charity work

Lebedev is the patron of the Evening Standard's Dispossessed Fund, which helps to address poverty in London, and has raised over £13m since its launch in 2010.[38] In 2018, he launched #AIDSFree, a cross-title campaign between The Independent and Evening Standard to raise money for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.[39] In 2019, he announced that both newspapers would launch a multiple-year campaign to tackle homelessness in London and around the world.[40]

Since the coronavirus lockdown began in the United Kingdom, Lebedev's news titles appealed in partnership with food surplus charity The Felix Project to supply food to vulnerable people, frontline charities and NHS hospitals.[41][42] In December 2020, the 'Food for London Now' appeal announced that it had surpassed its £10 million target and delivered 20 million meals.[43]

Personal life

According to The Daily Telegraph, Lebedev previously dated British actress Joely Richardson.[44] While he denies rumours about him being gay, which earned him the nickname "Two Beards"[b] coined by Private Eye, he is said not to mind people thinking so, according to media reports.[12]

Lord Lebedev collects modern British art, and owns pieces by Tracey Emin, Sir Antony Gormley, Damien Hirst, Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud and Jake and Dinos Chapman.[45] According to the New Statesman, he also has a wide knowledge of Renaissance art and vorticist poetry.[46] He had a pet wolf called Boris, named after the former Russian President Boris Yeltsin.[47]

Notes

  1. ^ The BGN/PCGN transliteration of Russian is used for his name here. ALA-LC system: Evgeniĭ Aleksandrovich Lebedev, ISO 9 system: Evgenij Aleksandrovič Lebedev.[2]
  2. ^ See Beard (companion)

References

  1. ^ "Titled". The Daily Telegraph. 19 December 2020.
  2. ^ "Russian – BGN/PCGN transliteration system". transliteration.com. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b Landler, Mark; Castle, Stephen (1 March 2022). "U.K. Moves to Tighten Laws on Oligarchs. Critics Say It's Too Late". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  4. ^ Usborne, Simon (21 February 2021). "The Dizzying Social Rise of Russian Scion Evgeny Lebedev". Town & Country. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  5. ^ Urwin, Harry Yorke, Gabriel Pogrund and Rosamund. "How Boris Johnson's friendship with Evgeny Lebedev deepened despite MI6 concerns". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 12 March 2022.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Woodcork, Andrew (31 July 2020). "The Independent's Evgeny Lebedev awarded peerage by PM". The Independent. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  7. ^ Courea, Eleni; Maguire, Patrick; O'Neill, Sean (31 July 2020). "Evgeny Lebedev: Son of KGB agent handed a seat in the Lords". The Times. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  8. ^ a b c "Evgeny Lebedev: I am not some agent of Russia". BBC News. 11 March 2022.
  9. ^ Yorke, Gabriel Pogrund, Harry. "Boris Johnson's Russian crony Evgeny Lebedev got peerage after spies dropped warning". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 5 March 2022.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ a b "Contact information for Lord Lebedev". Parliament of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  11. ^ Aspden, Peter (20 November 2019). "Lunch with the FT: Evgeny Lebedev". Financial Times. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  12. ^ a b Freddy Gray (26 September 2015). "The strange world of Evgeny Lebedev". The Spectator.
  13. ^ Andrew Cave (2 July 2009). "Evgeny Lebedev spells out his vision for the Evening Standard". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  14. ^ O'Carroll, Tristan. "DMGT confirms Standard to be sold to Lebedev". MediaWeek.
  15. ^ Stephen Brook (15 January 2010). "ABCs: Free London Evening Standard breaks through 600,000 barrier". The Guardian.
  16. ^ "Lebedev family buys Independent in deal to secure paper's future" Archived 27 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine, London Evening Standard website
  17. ^ Greenslade, Roy (10 February 2012). "Journalism Foundation gets its first project off the ground". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
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