Lady Annabel Goldsmith dies at 91, famed for Mayfair club Annabels

Lady Annabel Goldsmith, the society hostess whose name was given to the iconic Mayfair nightclub Annabels, has died at the age of 91, her family announced. No cause of death was disclosed.

Lady Annabel, born Annabel Vane‑Tempest‑Stewart in London in 1934, was a prominent figure in the London social scene from the 1950s onward. She came from an Anglo‑Irish aristocratic family and became Lady Annabel at 15 when her father succeeded as the Marquess of Londonderry. Her coming‑out ball in 1952 was attended by Queen Elizabeth II. Her early life combined privilege and loss: her mother died of cancer when she was a teenager and her father died a few years later.

Her public profile grew after her 1954 marriage to entrepreneur Mark Birley. Birley opened the private members club Annabels in 1963 and named it for his then wife; the club became synonymous with Mayfair glamour, drawing politicians, entertainers and members of the royal family. Reflecting on the club in later years, Lady Annabel said, "The dance floor was one of the hottest six foot square pieces of ground in London. I do not remember seeing it empty." She and Birley remained close friends after their marriage ended. Birley...