House of Guinness premiere spotlights brewing dynasty’s modern descendants

London hosted a blend of high fashion, history and modern celebrity as the House of Guinness premiere rolled out for Netflix’s new period drama. The event at Picturehouse Central drew interest less for the wine-dark carpet and more for the brewing dynasty’s present-day scions, who arrived in an array of eclectic styles. Among the guests were Lady Mary Charteris, Daphne Guinness, Lord Ned Iveagh, Ivana Lowell, Jasmine Guinness and Celeste Guinness, a lineup that underscored the family’s long-standing ties to fashion, art and music. The eight-part series traces the Guinness family story through 19th‑century Dublin and New York, but the premiere’s star power came from the descendants who have carved out distinct paths in contemporary culture. James Norton and Louis Partridge joined the crowd as part of the wider red-carpet moment, yet the night’s conversations often circled back to the living family behind the name.

Lady Mary Charteris, who arrived in a sheer black knitted dress with cutouts and metallic details, has built a public persona around modelling, DJing and performing with the electronic rock band The Big Pink. The 38-year-old is the youngest child of James Charteris and his first wife Catherine, who is the daughter of Guinness heir Jonathan Guinness, 3rd Baron Moyne. Her career has spanned campaigns for Tatler, Vanity Fair and Vogue, before she became a fixture on the music and party circuits. Her social circle includes Cara Delevingne, and she has spent time in Los Angeles with her husband in recent years. The premiere highlighted not just her style but the arc of a modern life lived within and beyond the Guinness network.

Daphne Guinness, 57, a noted muse to the late Karl Lagerfeld, is the daughter of Lord Moyne and Diana Mitford’s granddaughter. Her bold, artful approach to fashion has long positioned her at the edge of high society and couture, and she spoke to the public image of a woman who has balanced influence in design with personal history marked by dramatic life events. She has spoken about her grandmother Diana Mitford as a guiding figure and about the limits and expectations of a dynasty whose roots stretch into 20th‑century aristocratic circles. Her life has included association with leading designers, friendships in the fashion world, and a public presence that emphasizes individuality as much as lineage.

Ivana Lowell, 59, introduced the House of Guinness concept to the screen. The daughter of novelist Lady Caroline Blackwood and granddaughter of one of the dynasty’s celebrated figures, Maureen, Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava, Lowell is credited with drafting a television treatment that caught the imagination of Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. The project was developed into a Netflix series that aims to explore the family’s story with both ruthlessness and humanity. Lowell has described creating the character Sean Rafferty, a handsome brewery foreman portrayed by James Norton, as a way to inject conflict and passion into the narrative, while maintaining a sense of humor about the family’s public image. She has emphasized that, in her view, today’s Guinnesses are not merely a symbol of wealth but a family with a wide spectrum of experiences.

Jasmine Guinness, 48, a designer and model, has built a career that blends fashion with entrepreneurship. The daughter of Patrick Guinness and Liz Casey, she has appeared in campaigns for Armani and designed lines for retailers such as Oli and Very. She grew up at Leixlip Castle and has spoken in interviews about carving out her own path, insisting she isn’t defined by an heiress label. Her experience reflects a broader shift in the Guinness lineage—from traditional titles to creative influence in fashion and design.

Celeste Guinness, 35, a brewery heiress who has carved out a place in music and fashion, stood out in a black satin suit with Guinness-themed patches and a punk‑influenced mullet. She opened her jacket to reveal part of her chest as a bold statement of individualism. Celeste grew up in a milieu that mixes art, music and lineage, and she previously played bass in the punk trio Deep Tan, which also included Wafah Dufour, Osama bin Laden’s niece. Dufour has since distance herself from her late uncle, but the connection remains a notable chapter in the family’s contemporary narrative. Celeste’s public appearances at the premiere underscored a continuing willingness among Guinness descendants to push boundaries and redefine what it means to inherit a famous name.

Lord Ned Iveagh, Edward, the 4th Earl of Iveagh, carried himself with a more traditional poise. The Guinness family’s connection to the estate era in Ireland remains visible in his life story, including his upbringing at Farmleigh House in Dublin’s Phoenix Park. Farmleigh’s sale to the Irish state in 1999 and Iveagh’s long association with Elveden Hall in Suffolk anchor a lineage that blends aristocratic stewardship with modern business and philanthropy. Iveagh’s public profile includes recognition of a fortune often described in the hundreds of millions of pounds, a number that reflects generations of brewing wealth translated into landholdings and other ventures. The family’s elaborate landholdings—Elveden’s hundreds of acres and Iveagh’s broader holdings—sit alongside a modern-day interest in agriculture, conservation, and sustainable food production, as noted in statements from the Elveden estate.

The Netflix drama House of Guinness centers on the dynasty’s complex history and its impact on the world’s most recognizable beer brand. The show is set in the 19th century, across Dublin and New York, and features a cast that includes actors such as Fionn O’Shea, Louis Partridge, Anthony Boyle and Emily Fairn. Steven Knight, the creator behind Peaky Blinders, serves as writer and executive producer, guiding a scripted eight-episode arc that seeks to illuminate both the economic ambition and the personal tensions of a family that helped shape an industry and a city alike. The project has drawn on extensive family oral histories and archival research, with Ivana Lowell serving as a critical bridge to the living Guinnesss and their past.

The premiere’s emphasis on the living descendants reflects a broader interest in how historical families adapt to contemporary culture. The Guinness name has long carried cultural currency beyond brewing, linking fashion, philanthropy and art to a lineage that stretches back to the 18th and 19th centuries. The event itself included a backdrop of notable actors on the red carpet, signaling a cross-section of British film, fashion and music circles that converged to celebrate both the show and the family’s evolving identity.

The House of Guinness narrative pairs a high-gloss aesthetic with historical drama, offering viewers a portrait of wealth, power and the making of a global brand. While the series centers on the business acumen and social dynamics of its forebears, the premiere underscored how the modern Guinness family continues to influence culture through fashion, music and media. The cross-generational mix of attendees at the London premiere—models, artists, designers and aristocrats—illustrates a contemporary culture where lineage and innovation intersect. The event also highlighted the appeal of Netflix’s period pieces, which aim to blend meticulous production design with stories that reflect evolving attitudes toward wealth, influence and responsibility.

As the night wrapped, attendees lingered in conversations about the drama’s approach to history and the way contemporary descendants interpret their ancestry. The House of Guinness project, both in its television form and in the public attention surrounding the premiere, emphasizes a broader cultural conversation: how a historic family navigates modernity, preserves memory, and redefines its legacy for new generations. The premiere served as a focal point for those discussions, inviting audiences to consider not only the narrative on screen but the living, evolving story of the Guinness family itself.