| Occupation | Actress |
|---|---|
| Office | Spouse of the Prime Minister of Italy |
| Prime minister | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Term label | In role |
| Term start | 8 May 2008 |
| Term end | 10 May 2010 |
| Predecessor | Flavia Franzoni |
| Successor | Elsa Antonioli (2011) |
| Prime minister 1 | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Term label 1 | In role |
| Term start 1 | 11 June 2001 |
| Term end 1 | 17 May 2006 |
| Predecessor 1 | Diana Vincenzi |
| Successor 1 | Flavia Franzoni |
| Prime minister 2 | Silvio Berlusconi |
| Term label 2 | In role |
| Term start 2 | 11 May 1994 |
| Term end 2 | 15 January 1995 |
| Predecessor 2 | Franca Pilla |
| Successor 2 | Donatella Pasquali Zingone |
| Spouse | Silvio Berlusconi (m. 1990; ended 2010) |
| Birth date | July 19, 1956 (age 70) |
| Birth place | Bologna, Italy |
Veronica Lario (born Miriam Raffaella Bartolini, 19 July 1956) is a former Italian actress and the former wife of ex-Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.[1]
Biography
Born in Bologna, Lario was a stage actress under Enrico Maria Salerno, with whom she had a love affair. She also worked in theatrical plays with well-known actors; Her most famous role is in Tenebrae by horror master Dario Argento. She retired from acting after meeting Silvio Berlusconi. Married on 15 December 1990, Berlusconi and Lario have three children together: Barbara Berlusconi (1984),[2] Eleonora (1986), and Luigi (1988). In the 1980s, before the birth of their first-born daughter Barbara, Lario terminated an earlier pregnancy with an induced abortion, in order not to give birth to a child affected by significant morbidity.[3]
As the wife of the Italian premier, Lario chose to maintain a low public profile. She avoided most public events and meetings and she seldom accompanied her husband Silvio Berlusconi at official meetings. On the other hand, she was known to publicly express political opinions contrasting with those of her then-husband, for example on bioethics or in backing protesters demonstrating against the war in Iraq.[4] Lario's husband was never shy about mentioning her on public occasions, and he alluded at least once to a supposed affair between her and philosopher and opposition politician Massimo Cacciari.[5]
On 31 January 2007, Lario said her dignity had been damaged by comments Berlusconi reportedly made during the VIP party after a TV awards ceremony broadcast by one of his channels. According to reports widely carried in the Italian press, Berlusconi told showgirl and future parliamentarian Mara Carfagna, "If I weren't married I would marry you immediately." He reportedly told another, "With you, I'd go anywhere." Lario's letter appeared in La Repubblica, a nationally prominent newspaper. She declared: "I see these statements as damaging my dignity. To both my husband and the public man, I therefore demand a public apology, since I haven't received any privately. I have faced the inevitable contrasts and the more painful moments that a long conjugal relation entails with respect and discretion." Lario added, "Now I write to state my reaction", saying her husband's comments were "unacceptable" and could not be reduced to mere jokes. After a few hours, Berlusconi responded with a public letter to his wife and apologized for what he had said three days earlier.
In April 2009, Lario once more published an open letter, criticising her husband for consorting with young ladies,[6] and defining his chosen candidates for the European Parliament as "shameless rubbish". On 3 May 2009, it was reported that she was to file for divorce,[7][8] which under Italian law can only be started after a couple has reached a separation agreement. On 10 May 2010, it was revealed that a separation settlement had been reached, with Berlusconi accepting alimony payments of €3.6 million per year, and allowing her to live in their luxury home near Milan.[9]
In December 2012, a Milan court established that Berlusconi would be required to pay his ex-wife €3 million a month (€36 million a year).[10] In 2015 on 23 June 2015, the Court of Justice of Milan established that Berlusconi would pay his ex-wife €1.4 million a month. On 16 November 2017, the Court of Appeal of Milan established that Berlusconi would not have to pay the €1.4 million per month to his ex-wife, who was ordered to give back the amounts she received since 2014 (approximately €60 million).[11]
External links
- Veronica Lario at IMDb
Notes
- ^ "Italy court finalises Berlusconi divorce". Reuters. 18 February 2014. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016.
- ^ At this time Silvio Berlusconi was still married to Carla Elvira Lucia Dall'Oglio, from whom he was divorced in 1985.
- ^ Latella, Maria (2005-04-08). "Veronica Berlusconi: quel mio dramma e la scelta di andare a votare" [Veronica Berlusconi: my drama and the choice to go and vote] (in Italian). Corriere della Sera. Retrieved 2024-01-04.
- ^ "BBC NEWS | Europe | Berlusconi's wife to divorce him". BBC News. 3 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-16.
- ^ While the supposed affair was only mentioned in gossip tabloids, in October 2002, during a press conference with Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Silvio Berlusconi said he ought to introduce his wife to Rasmussen, "the best-looking prime minister in Europe and certainly more handsome than Cacciari". See also the Guardian on this episode.
- ^ Donadio, Rachel (30 April 2009). "Premier's Roving Eye Enrages Wife, but Not His Public". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
- ^ "Berlusconi's wife to divorce him". BBC News. 3 May 2009. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
- ^ "Berlusconi's wife wants to end marriage, reports say - CNN.com". CNN. 3 May 2009. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
- ^ Verenz, Paul (10 May 2010). "Berlusconi's wife to accept €3.5m a year in divorce". Irish Independent
- ^ Veronica €100,000 per day – Berlusconi keeps the heritage (in Italian). corriere.it.
- ^ "Berlusconi, niente più assegno mensile da 1,4 milioni a Veronica". 16 November 2017.