Queer Places:
136 Chatsworth Rd, London NW2 5QU, UK
Pellew Island, Fairy Hill, Jamaica
Cimetiere de Garches
Garches, Departement des Hauts-de-Seine, Île-de-France, France
Nina Sheila Dyer (15 February 1930 – 3 July 1965) was a British model and society figure.
Nina Dyer was "Oliver" to her women lovers. One of her lovers gave her a
Cartier bracelet with the inscription "To my partner, untamed by man." Dyer was the daughter of a British tea plantation owner in British Ceylon. After her father's death in 1945, she
moved to London. Here she started her modeling career, but soon left for Paris, where she made a career under the care of couturier
Pierre Balmain. Dyer was a welcome guest at the jet set on the French Riviera, and in 1954 married steel industrialist and art collector Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza. However, the relationship lasted only briefly and the divorce was formally pronounced in 1956.
Then, in 1957, Dyer married Iranian Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan and was addressed as Princess Shirin. This marriage did not last either; in 1960 Dyer and Khan separated and in 1962 the divorce was pronounced. Dyer retired to a house in the village of Garches, west of Paris. She died of an overdose of sleeping pills in July 1965 and was buried in silence in the
Garches village cemetery on July 7, 1965. Her legacy went to organizations involved in animal protection.
Nina Dyer was born on February 15th 1930 in Ceylon (modern day Sri Lanka).
Her mother, Elsie Rogers, was Indian and her father was the wealthy British tea plantation owner, Stanley Hartop Dyer.
Nina spent her childhood in Ceylon and dreamed of becoming an actress. As soon as she was old enough, Nina travelled to England where she took drama lessons in Liverpool. Soon after arriving in Britain, Nina headed to London and, thanks to her stunning looks, she quickly found work as a fashion model.
Nina then moved to Paris where she became a favourite of Pierre Balmain.
While in France, Nina began to attend glamorous parties on the Riviera. While mingling with various members of international high society, Nina met Baron Hans Heinrich von Thyssen-Bornemisza (Heini) who was heir to the Thyssen industrial empire.
Upon the death of his father in 1947, Heini had become the wealthiest man in Europe at the age of just 25.
Despite having been married to Princess Theresa de Lippe (with whom he had two children), Heini became infatuated with Nina. They began an affair and Nina was showered with extravagant gifts.
Heini bought his mistress a $65 million worth of jewellery, one of four wild chinchilla coats in the world and two black panthers which reputedly caused considerable damage to some of the hotel suites Nina occupied. One Valentine’s Day, Heini also gave Nina Pellew Island in Jamaica.
Another early gift was a Pegaso Z102 with unique Cabriolet coachwork by Saoutchik. The pale yellow Pegaso had been displayed at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1953. It sported leopard-skin upholstery and an array of gold-plated interior fittings, but Nina only kept the car for a few months.
Heini eventually divorced Princess Theresa and asked Nina to marry him. As a wedding gift, he gave her a uniquely appointed Ferrari 250 Mille Miglia.
The 250 Mille Miglia was no ordinary Ferrari. Instead, it was a GT racing car that could be toned down for road use if required. Nina’s 250 Mille Miglia was equipped with Berlinetta coachwork by Pinin Farina. She requested Ivory coachwork with dark grey Hermes suede upholstery. The Ferrari was dispatched to Pinin Farina in September 1953 and delivered to the couple’s chateau on the outskirts of Paris a few weeks later.
Heini and Nina married in June 1954.
However, within three months, Heini discovered Nina had been having an affair with a handsome but penniless French actor, Christian Marquand. The two men had a fight in a Parisian nightclub but, despite the infidelity, Heini initially resisted a divorce.
When he did ultimately serve Nina with divorce papers, she reacted by going on a shopping spree. Nina spent
$400.000 at the
Balenciaga boutique in Paris and then
$600.000 at
Givenchy. Heini was only made aware of the situation when Hubert de Givenchy alerted him to what was happening.
The divorce was formerly sanctioned in July 1956. Heine had to pay $2.8 million, give up his 70-acre chateau just outside Paris, hand over an additional $400,000 of jewels and a painting by El Greco.
Within a year, Nina had met Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan.
Prince Sadruddin was the son of Aga Khan III (Sultan Mahomed Shah), one of the world’s wealthiest royals and the 48th Imam of the Nizari Ismaili religion.
Nina was again the recipient of extravagant gifts including a famous set of Cartier panthers in honour of her beloved pets. Prince Sadruddin also gave Nina another Jamaican island, Tiamo, which was next door to Pellew and became her boathouse.
Nina and Prince Sadruddin married in August 1957. Prince Sadruddin had to renounce the succession as otherwise he would not have been able to marry a divorced woman. Nina converted to Islam and became Princess Nina Aga Khan.
The marriage led to accusations of gold digging to which Nina responded:
“People have called me scheming, but nothing is further from the truth. Luck fell on me without doing anything, it has been like this since my childhood. It just happened that the great things in life became my daily life.”
As a wedding gift, Prince Sadruddin ordered Nina a Series 1 Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet. The handsome Roadster was painted Senna Green and came with a beige interior. It was dispatched to the Pinin Farina plant in May 1957 and delivered in time for the wedding.
On the surface Nina led a charmed life, but Prince Sadruddin was reputedly neglectful and in 1960 they separated after three years of marriage.
When the marriage failed, Nina sold the Ferrari Prince Sadruddin had given her and retreated to Pellew Island with her beloved black panthers. She then returned to Paris and expanded her world renowned jewellery collection, much of which was supplied by Cartier for whom she was a VIP customer.
Nina also took delivery of another sports car: a Series 1 Jaguar E-type 3.8 Roadster. The Jaguar was finished in Cream with a black interior and was dispatched to Paris in March 1962.
Prince Sadruddin and Nina’s divorce was officially pronounced in June 1962. Nina was left with another $1.4m.
In November 1962, Nina ordered what would be her last sports car: a short wheelbase Ferrari 250 GT Spyder California. It was now her only Ferrari as, earlier in the year, she had gifted her 250 Mille Miglia to the Le Mans Museum.
Like her earlier 250 GT Cabriolet, the Spyder California was painted Metallic Green. Nina ordered the car with a black interior and also requested installation of a radio.
It was delivered to Nina in early 1963.
Unfortunately, with few friends, no children and no career, Nina had little to keep her occupied and fell into deep depression.
She died at her chateau on July 3rd 1965 having taken an overdose of sleeping pills.
Nina’s fortune was left to animal welfare charities.
Her Ferrari Spyder California was subsequently sold off to a French buyer.
In 2015, Nina’s Jaguar E-type was discovered in a dilapidated condition in a Jamaican scrap yard. It has since been repatriated to the UK and restored.
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