Sir Benjamin Slade: Aristocrat in High Court battle with ex-wife over £1.2m trust fund

An eccentric aristocrat known for advertising a “castle-educated” woman who will give birth to his heir is locked in a High Court fight with his ex-wife over his £1.2 million trust fund.

Sir Benjamin Slade, 7th Baronet of Maunsel, is fighting Lady Pauline Slade over her desire to sell Old Farm, a £585,000 house on his 2,000-acre estate in rural Somerset.

Following the couple’s divorce settlement in 1994, Lady Slade received an “income fund” currently worth around £651,000 and the right to live rent-free at the property in Lower Rydon, West Newton. He now plans to sell it to pay off his debts and increase his income.

Sir Benjamin, 79, is known for appearing on ITV This Morning He is looking for a new wife in 2018. He said at the time that she couldn’t come from a country that starts with ‘I’ or has green on its flag, and that she shouldn’t be a Scorpio, a lesbian or a Scot.

He recently made a brief appearance on the Channel 4 reality game show. Handcuffed: Last Couple Standingbut left the show after an explosive, drunken rant.

The baronet has put his mansion up for sale for £3.5 million in 2025 and currently lives in the house at the center of the court fight.

His lawyers argue that his ex-wife has no rights to the income earned. The fund’s trustees petitioned the judge to determine whether he could force them to sell the property and, if so, how the funds could be used.

Sir Benjamin is a direct descendant of one of the Duke of Wellington’s generals, General Sir John Slade, the first baronet.

The baronet’s family seat is the sprawling 13-bedroom red-brick Maunsel House in Somerset. With its origins dating back to the 11th century, it is said to be where Geoffrey Chaucer wrote some of his works.

The house features a covered secret passage that was once connected to the local church, while a well-stocked pub features a display case of 81 weapons, including a heavy machine gun.

Sir Benjamin made a fortune in the shipping industry but made headlines for a variety of reasons; He most recently left Jonathan Ross’ reality game show. Handcuffed: Last Couple Standing after hours spent handcuffed to a fellow contestant.

Paired with a former prison guard at Maunsel House for his partner, the aristocrat lasted nearly 12 hours and demanded to be released with bolt cutters after demanding the return of his phone, in breach of the programme’s protocols.

“This is my house, I want my f***ing phone thank you – I need to check what’s going on in the world,” he was recorded telling producers in an expletive-filled rant, before setting off to find a pair of bolt cutters to separate himself and his partner.

Sir Benjamin’s first wife, Pauline Myburgh, 79, was the daughter of Devon county cricketer and British Army officer Major Claude Myburgh.

When they divorced in 1994, he settled into a trust to provide her with income and also transferred the Old Farm to her for use as a home.

But the baronet’s lawyer, Robert Deacon, told the court that Lady Slade had moved out in 2022 or 2023 and later wrote a letter in August 2024 “confirming that she has no intention of living in the property again”.

Lady Slade said she did not want to buy a “replacement property” but simply wanted the Old Farm to be sold for her benefit.

“He wanted the sale proceeds to be invested to increase his income and all his debts to be paid from the sale proceeds,” Mr. Deacon continued.

That decision has now sparked a Supreme Court fight; Sir Benjamin insisted that he was not entitled to any money from the house as the money had only been transferred to provide himself with a house.

Her lawyer said the purpose of the 1994 agreement was “to provide Lady Slade with income from the cash fund deposited in the trust and to provide her with rent-free accommodation for life by transferring the property to the trust”.

“It was never objectively intended that the property be used to provide income to Lady Slade or in any way.

“Under the contract, he does not have the right to change the fundamental purpose of the foundation and the nature of the foundation’s property from a house into an income-generating asset,” he argued.

Mr Deacon argued Lady Slade had limited rights in relation to both the investment fund and the Old Farm and said she had no authority to manage the £651,000 trust fund.

“Under the agreement, he has a lifetime share of his income but does not have the right to control the capital of the trust fund,” he said.

“In respect of property, trustees have a limited power to direct the property to sell, but only to acquire another property. [to be her home].

“This does not allow him to request that the proceeds be invested.”

Sir Benjamin also claims that under the terms of the divorce settlement, his former lover cannot seek the sale of the Old Farm unless she actually lives on the property, and argues that the purpose of the trust is merely to secure her permanent accommodation.

“There is a trust that will allow him to live there for as long as he lives,” he told the court.

“A more fundamental point is that the property was transferred solely to provide him with a place to live rent-free.”

Sir Benjamin was in court for the brief hearing, where High Court judge Master Julia Clark was asked to resolve the “preliminary issue” of whether Lady Slade could “compel” the trustees to sell the Old Farm and “invest the proceeds to provide income for herself”.

The two trustees were represented in court by attorney Hugh Cumber, who emphasized their “neutral” stance in the face of “diametrically opposed views.”

Lady Slade is one of the named parties in the case but was not represented in court; The trustee’s attorney told the judge that he did not attend the trial or present evidence “despite his interest in the outcome of the trial.”

And he added: “(The trustees) initiated these proceedings with the aim of resolving the dispute and ensuring the proper management of the trust.”

Master Clark reserved his decision as to whether Lady Slade could force the trustees to sell the house and invest to increase its income until a later date.