A major new biography of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage reveals that he initially feared his French girlfriend might be an undercover spy. Lord Ashcroft's book, The Farage Factor, published this week, details how the politician met Laure Ferrari when she began working for his former friend and fellow UKIP MEP Godfrey Bloom.
Early Suspicion
According to a friend of Farage, he was deeply skeptical of Ferrari when she was hired. "Nigel actually thought that Laure was a spy to begin with," the source told Lord Ashcroft. "He told Godfrey it was madness to employ a Frenchwoman. He was suspicious of her for a good few months."
Ferrari, who grew up in Alsace, northern France, studied English and history at the University of Strasbourg. Her grandfather was a member of the French Resistance during World War II. In 2005, she joined France's successful 'No' campaign against the EU constitution. Shortly after, while working as a waitress in a Strasbourg restaurant near the European Parliament, she met several UKIP MEPs and staffers, including Bloom.
From Suspicion to Romance
Despite Farage's initial distrust, the pair eventually became friends and later a couple. However, Farage long refused to confirm the relationship publicly to protect Ferrari from scrutiny. She is 15 years his junior. "As well as being a romantic partner, she is probably Farage's most important adviser, even acting as interpreter when he met Jordan Bardella, the president of France's National Rally, in London in December 2025," writes Lord Ashcroft.
Political Career
In 2012, Ferrari stood unsuccessfully as a candidate for the Eurosceptic party Debout la France in the French general election. She later became head of communications for the Europe of Freedom and Democracy parliamentary group. In the 2014 European elections, she stood again for Debout la France but lost to the National Front. Subsequently, she worked for the Institute for Direct Democracy in Europe, a think-tank partially funded by the European Parliament, becoming its executive director and moving its head office to London in 2015.
Public Acknowledgment
Labeled by some media as a "secret girlfriend," Ferrari gave her first TV interview in 2023, insisting that was not the case. "I want to come out," she told GB News. "I do exist, and I do support Nigel." Soon after, she traveled to Queensland, Australia, to greet Farage after he finished third on I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!
Farage was previously married to Clare Hayes, with whom he has two sons, and Kirsten Mehr, with whom he also has two children. Lord Ashcroft's book is the first major biography of Farage, 62, described as one of Britain's most successful insurgent politicians. He is the only person in the modern era to have led two different political parties to victory in successive national elections: UKIP in the 2014 European elections and the Brexit Party in 2019. With Reform UK currently polling strongly, many expect him to lead the party to victory in the next General Election.
