RICHARD EDEN'S DIARY: Will rippling new Cameron win over his neighbours?

He has, it would appear, finally won his epic struggle to control his weight, shedding as much as 4st in the estimation of one chum, as I disclosed in September.

And it appears to have put David Cameron in the mood for parading in the open air clad in nothing more than his swimming trunks.

I can reveal that the former prime minister has just revived his ambition of equipping his Cotswolds residence with a swimming pool.

Some might term that 'bold' – the word Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton used when he heard of Rishi Sunak's decision to hold an election in July 2024.

That's because his first bid for a pool ended in such abject failure that a lesser man might have abandoned all hope – or, in Dave's case, consoled himself by fitting a plunge-pool inside his £25,000 shepherd's hut.

It was back in 2020 that he sought permission to insert a 46ft pool at the country retreat which has been home to him and his wife, Samantha, and their three children for many years, when not in London. 

Perhaps assuming his closest neighbours would yelp with delight at the prospect – certainly if invited for the odd dip – Dave and Sam decided the pool would be in a paddock far closer to their neighbours' house than their own.

This proved a miscalculation. Mark and Katherine Smith, who live barely a stone's throw distant, objected to the paddock's proposed 'change of use' from 'agricultural' to 'residential', arguing the pool would have 'a serious negative impact on our standard of living' and erode 'the natural beauty of the area'.

Lest Dave – and the council – failed to get the message, the Smiths also cited the Human Rights Act, noting that a person 'has the right to peaceful enjoyment' of their home and other land. Three months later, Dave ran up the white flag and withdrew the application.

This time, his application would appear more swallow dive than belly-flop, with the proposed pool far closer to his house than to the Smiths' and shielded by a 'Cotswold rubble-stone retaining wall'.

The application has only just gone in. Could be a tense Christmas. Will the Smiths give Dave a '10' – in or out of his budgie smugglers?

Why school's out for Dame Darcey 

Dame Darcey Bussell was determined to keep inspiring a love of dance after stepping down as a judge on Strictly in 2019.

The former Royal Ballet star had established a charity, Diverse Dance Mix (DDMIX), to get dance fitness classes on the PE curriculum.

Through its membership, schools can access lesson plans with dance videos, music and training for teachers. Now, however, Darcey (left) is stepping down from DDMIX after 11 years and passing the baton to children's mental health charity Place2Be.

'We're incredibly excited to be handing over our school programme to Place2Be and we know it's in the best possible hands,' says Dame Darcey, 56.

Do you love the smell of a new car? It could soon be a thing of the past, claims design expert Stephen Bayley. 

'What many people will never enjoy is that 'new car smell',' says Bayley. 'I am told it offends the Chinese.' Ford has hired teams to reduce 'new car smell' due to pushback from Chinese consumers concerned about the chemicals used to create the odour. 

Bayley reflects: 'Very rarely does one experience something as close to perfection as a brand new car... even if its associated smell is composed of gases given off by volatile organic compounds.' 

Titanic love revelations 

He's notched up three Oscars, five wives – and, perhaps, some rather bruisingly acquired wisdom.

That, at least, seems to be what Hollywood director James Cameron is suggesting.

'I was never into the kind of classic male dominance... which means that my love life has been rather fraught,' muses Cameron, 71, whose blockbusters include Titanic. 'Because if you're attracted to strong women you're going to get hit harder.'

Cameron, happily married since 2000 to Suzy Amis, enjoyed two years of marital bliss with wife No. 4, Linda Hamilton, star of another of his hits – Terminator. Pure box office...

Billionaire's girl braced for better luck in new year 

Heiress Jemima Howden will hope 2026 brings a change of luck.

Just weeks after being airlifted out of Colombia with suspected sepsis, the daughter of billionaire insurance tycoon David Howden – who runs Cornbury Estate in the Cotswolds – reveals she was injured by her horse last week after returning home. 

'A bit battered after a young one spooked, tripped and landed on me,' explains Jemima, 21. 'Two knee braces and a lacerated spleen.'

Priscilla raises a glass to great British pubs... 

The king of rock 'n' roll Elvis Presley's ex-wife Priscilla Presley can't help falling in love with the British way of life.

'I truly love it here,' the former Dallas star tells me on a visit to London's West End. 

'There is something about here that is just really special, and I don't think any of you know what you have here – you have the greatest bars.'

The actress, 80, adds of Lisa Marie Presley, who died in 2023 aged 54: 'My daughter and I would go bar-hopping and we would go to the cute little ones off the road and people could not believe it. It felt like freedom.'

Cheers to that!

Laura's starry eyed romance 

Game Of Thrones actress Laura Pradelska's new romance appears to have been written in the stars.

The German, 45, who played Quaithe in the sex and dragons drama, made her debut public appearance with boyfriend Mauricio Franco, a fashion designer from Argentina, at a London party.

'I met him dancing under the stars in Ibiza in the summer,' she tells me at the 150th anniversary celebration of chocolatier Charbonnel et Walker.

'I was kind of heartbroken at the time. I had been single for about six months and I didn't want to go out, but then I did, and I met him.'