Go through the keyhole with some old-school celebrities
While we’re used to seeing them splashed across magazine covers or flickering on film screens, these photos reveal what it looks like when some of the world’s most iconic celebrities kick back and relax at home with their loved ones.
And, for all their wealth and glamour, you may be surprised to see just how normal domestic life for these celebrated stars can be when the world isn’t watching.
From Arnold Schwarzenegger to Sonny & Cher, Marilyn Monroe andBrigitte Bardot, read onto step inside the home lives of some of the most famous faces…
Angela Lansbury goes to Hollywood
Iconic stage actress and film and TV star Angela Lansbury is known for a career which spanned 80 years. The beloved actress was born in Londonbut fled to the United States during the Blitz in 1940, where she went on to study acting in New York City.
In 1942, Lansbury made the big move out west, settling in Hollywood and contracting with MGM Studios, which would launch her career. It was in Hollywood that Lansbury would acquire her first home, a mid-century modern bungalow in Santa Monica, pictured here.
Angela Lansbury making house a home
While owning her own home as a young woman in the 1940s was groundbreaking enough, Lansbury was soon sharing her digs with fellow MGM contractor and expatriate Peter Pullen Shaw, though the pair were not yet married.
It was Lansbury who eventually proposedand they were married back in London in 1949. This photo shows the future star of Disney hits Bedknobs and Broomsticks and Beauty and the Beast directing Shaw as he arranges furniture in their home.
Joan Collins at the piano
Joan Collins is an English actress and author with a prestigious career spanning nearly eight decades. Once nicknamed “Britain’s bad girl”, Collins starred in numerous hit films in England and America throughout the 1950s and 60s, before transitioning to television in the 1970s.
However, despite her busy professional schedule, Collins still made time for family life and is pictured here in the living room of her Beverly Hills home in 1981 listening to her daughter Katyana practising the piano.
Joan Collins, novelist at work
Later in life, Collins took up writing, becoming a regular columnist for numerous newspapers including The Spectator, The Sunday Telegraphand Harper’s Bazar, as well as publishing several best-selling novels and lifestyle books.
She is pictured here in the office of her Beverly Hills home in 1995, working on her latest novel against a backdrop of her own framed magazine covers from around the world.
Cary Grant's "Bachelor Hall"
From his humble beginnings as Archibald Leach in Bristol, England, Cary Grant rose to become the definitive leading man of Hollywood’s Golden Age. And, with his good looks, suave demeanour and charming Mid-Atlantic accent, he was also Hollywood’s hottest bachelor. However, Grant appeared in no rush to end his bachelorhood for many years.
He’s pictured here relaxing with fellow actor Randolph Scott in what became known as 'Bachelor Hall',a Santa Monica home the pair bought and shared for 12 years after striking up a friendship on the set of Hot Saturday in 1932.
Cary Grant at home
Cary Grantwent on to marry five times over the course of his life. He is pictured here in a 1943 publicity shot for RKO Radio Pictures on the porch of his home with his second wife, socialite and heiress Barbara Huttonand their dog.
While the couple appears relaxed enough, we can’t help but notice he looks a lot less happy in this snap than he did back in his bachelor pad…
Marilyn Monroe's domestic set-up
One of Hollywood’s brightest stars and the biggest bombshell of the 19th century,Marilyn Monroelived a glamorous life tempered by tragedy. While the actress starred in countless box office juggernauts such asGentlemen Prefer BlondesandSome Like It Hot, she also struggled with addiction, depressionand several unhappy marriages, resulting in a fraught home life.
However, the star did still enjoy some peaceful domestic moments, such as this cosy California bedroom scene. Here, Monroe is seen relaxing on her sofa opening her copious fan mail.
Marilyn Monroe's last LA home
Later that same year, Monroe signed a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox studios which would make her a star. Here she is pictured outside her Los Angeles home in 1956before she moved to New York to marry her third husband, playwright Arthur Miller.
The star appears relaxed outside the mid-century, ranch-style home, perhaps enjoying her last months of freedom before a return to married domestic life.
Judy Garland and baby Liza Minelli
Judy Garland became an icon of the silver screen at the tender age of 16when she won the coveted role of Dorothy Gale in MGM’s The Wizard of Oz. Garland went on to star in countless movie musicals, with hits including Easter Parade and Meet Me in St Louis.
During the filming of the latter production, Garland met and fell in love with director Vincent Minelli and the pair were married in 1945, giving birth to daughter Liza a year later. Captured here with Liza in their family home in 1946, the actress is the picture of domestic bliss.
Judy Garland cooks pancakes
Moments of peace at home, like thissnap of her smiling while flipping pancakes in herkitchen, were a rarity.
Forced to work long hours at the studio and plagued by the constant suggestion that she wasn’t attractive enough to be a star, Judy struggled with addiction and depression her entire life.
Charlie Chaplin's elegant exile
From struggling vaudevillian to Hollywood’s most iconic comic star, Charlie Chaplin’s life was a true tale of rags to riches. Chaplin began life in poverty in London’s workhouses before transferring to the music hall stages, where he was scouted by an agent who took him to the US to launch his film career.
Chaplin’s star continued to rise throughout the 1920s, 30s and 40s but came to an abrupt halt in the 1950s when he was accused of Communist sympathies andrelocatedto a home in Switzerland, pictured here second from the left.
Charlie Chaplin's life at Manoir de Ban
Chaplain’s Swiss abode, the Manoir de Ban, was an elegant chateau on the banks of Lake Geneva where the exiled actor moved with his wife, Oona O’Neill, pictured here holding their newborn daughter Jane. Around them are the couple’s other five children.
Often surrounded by family, Chaplin lived comfortably at Manoir de Ban for 25 years, from 1952 until his death in 1977. Today, the house serves as a museum dedicated to the life and works of its previous owner.
John Lennon, stay-at-home dad
As a member of the world-famous rock group the Beatles, John Lennon was a controversial but beloved figure in the world of music. Lennon met artist Yoko Ono in 1966 at her exhibition at London's Indica Gallery and the pair were married three years later.The Beatles split the following year and many fans unfairly attributed the breakup to that fateful pairing.
Ono was a multimedia artist who collaborated extensively with Lennon on performance art, music and peace protests. When Ono gave birth to the couple’s son Sean, Lennon stepped back from the spotlight to be a full-time parent, as can be seen in this cute snap in his son’s bedroom in their Liverpool home.
John and Yoko at Tittenhurst Park
Lennon and Onosettled in Tittenhurst Park, near Ascot, Berkshire, which they bought for £150,000 ($198k). The Grade II-listed early Georgian stately home included extensive gardens, servants’ quarters and Tudor cottages, all extensively renovated to suit the couple’s tastes.
It was even updated to include a recording studio, Ascot Sound Studios, where the pair collaborated on several pieces. When he settled permanently in the US, Lennon sold Tittenhurst Park to former bandmate Ringo Starr, who renamed the studio Startling Studios.
The Jacksons move to Hayvenhurst
The Jackson 5 may be best known for producing chart-topping solo musician Michael Jacksonbut this boy band formed by the five Jackson brothers was a musical powerhouse in its own right for over 20 years. The band was founded in 1964 by the boys’ father, Joe Jacksonwho went on to manage the band’s climb to the top.
While the Jackson family had humble origins in Gary, Indiana, with the band’s first commercial success in 1971, Joe Jackson moved the family to Hayvenhurst, a two-acre (0.8ha) compound in California’s San Fernando Valley, which he bought for $250,000 (£189k), roughly $1.8 million (£1.4m) today.
The Jacksons' California compound
While the Jackson boys may not have had a normal childhood, their Hayvenhurst digs made up for the loss in many ways. In addition to the five-bedroom, seven-bathroom main building, the compound also included a movie theatre, koi pond, ice cream parlour, candy store, puppet shop and a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs diorama.
Michael Jackson remained at Hayvenhurst until he bought his own Neverland Ranch in 1987, but as far as public record shows, Hayvenhurst remains in the Jackson family to this day.
Elvis, happiest at home
For all his high-flying professional commitments, Elvis Presley was really a homebody and family man at heart, with close ties to his mother in particular. He’s pictured here sprawled on the bed beside his mother, Gladys in the one-storey ranch on Audubon Drive where he moved with his parents in March of 1956.
At the time, Elvis was already a star and police were often called to the property to corral the mob of fans hoping for a glimpse of the heartthrob.
Elvis, Priscilla and Lisa Marie
Elvis travelled a long way over the course of his life and career, from a two-room shack in Tupelo, Mississippi, to his spectacularGracelandmansion where he ended his life. Before his tragic death, however, the singer certainly enjoyed happy moments in his iconic Memphis home, which he purchased for $102,500 (£77.7k) in March of 1957.
Here he is pictured with his wife Priscilla, daughter Lisa Marieand the family dog playing in the backyardin 1968.Set on 13.8 acres (5.6ha), the Colonial Revival-style mansion offered plenty of room not only for Elvis’s young family but also his parents, his grandmotherand even his aunt.
John Wayne kicks back in Texas
Known as the smouldering star of Golden Age Hollywood’s Western and war films, John Wayne began acting in the 1920s silent film era, with a career that would go on to span more than 50 years.
Wayne spent much of his life out in Californiabut is pictured here relaxing in his Texas home in 1975, four years before his death.
John Wayne playing chess at home
The star’s home was as ruggedly masculine as his on-screen personas, with dark wooden furnishings, spacious floorplansand equine art. Wayne is seen here playing chess, a favourite pastime of his during downtime on set.
Jane Fonda, like father like daughter
Prolific actress and activist Jane Fonda has won two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, seven Golden Globe Awardsand a Primetime Emmy Award over the course of a career which has spanned nearly six decades.
The daughter of respected stage and screen actor Henry Fonda, Jane was raised with a love for performing. She is pictured here with her dad in his home, presenting him with the Oscar he received for best actor in the 54th Annual Academy Awards.
Jane Fonda working from home
Surrounded by a cacophony of Indian print pillows, bedspreads and wall hangings, Jane looks relaxed as she takes a phone call from her publication-strewn bed at home in Beverly Hills in 1970.
At the time, she was married to French screenwriter and director Roger Vadim, with whom she had a daughterVanessa, named after fellow actress and activist Vanessa Redgrave.
Doris Day puts down roots
American actress and singer Doris Day began life as a Big Band chanteuse in 1939, but her numerous No. 1 recordings soon led her to Hollywood. Constantly on tour with the Les Brown band during the early phase of her career, Day found it difficult to establish a proper home base.
However, after her breakthrough role in Romance on the High Seas, it finally made sense for her to set up shop out west. Here she is pictured on the front lawn of her home in 1949, playing with her dogs by the pool.
Family time with Doris Day
Day went on to star in countless box office blowouts includingPillow Talk,The Man Who Knew Too MuchandCalamity Jane, but still managed to find time for cosy moments at home. Here she is in her dining room, enjoying some family time with her mother and son.
Diana Ross and her glamourous view
Lead singer of one of the most successful Motown and girl groups of all time, Diana Ross had numerous chart-topping songs both as a member of the Supremesand as a solo artist.
Ross also pursued a film career, famously portraying Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues in 1972. Based out in Tinsel Town while working on the film, Ross is pictured here posing glamorously on the balcony of her Hollywood home in March of 1971.
Diana Ross poses on her driveway
With such a spectacular view of the Hollywood skyline, it’s hard to imagine why Ross would ever want to leave this glamorous residence behind.
However, the property was one of a large portfolio the star enjoyed during her lifetime, including multimillion-dollar homes in Miami Beach, Beverly Hillsand an upscale Connecticut suburb.
Sonny & Cher's Encino mansion
American pop and entertainment duo Sonny & Cher dominated the 1960s and 70s with R&B classics like 'I Got You Babe'and 'Baby Don’t Go'.In addition to their musical partnership, the pair were also a married couple, enabling them to pair business with pleasure in their glamorous Mediterranean-style home in Encino, California.
The couple bought the six-bedroom property (pictured here) in 1967 from actor Tony Curtis for $250,000 (£190k) as reported by UK magazine Closer.
Sonny & Cher take a phone call
With 1930s craftsmanship, wide open spaces and vaulted ceilings, the airy home was the perfect space for the artists to collaborate. The house included a breakfast room, home theatre, billiards room, wood-panelled library, grandly proportioned dining room and supersized swimming pool.
The couple lived there happily until their comedy debut in 1971 with The Sonny & Cher Show, at which point they were convinced to move yet again by – you guessed it – Tony Curtis!
Walt Disney's secret fire station apartment
Impresario of the silver screen and gatekeeper to the realms of fantasy and imagination long after his passing, Walt Disney was a visionary across numerous industries.
While he had a shrewd eye for business, Disney also knew how to keep the magic alive in his personal life, from his California home full of whimsical touchesto his private apartment above the town square fire station on Main Street, USA in Disneyland, pictured here.
Disney's Victorian masterpiece
Disney’s focus shifted to his theme park as soon as it opened in 1955 and he spentas much time there as possible. The apartment also made a convenient home base for Disney, who spent long hours commuting between Anaheim and the studios.
Disney hired Academy Award-winning set designer Emile Kuri to decorate and furnish the space, packing it with carefully selected antiques, china and bric-a-brac to turn it into Walt’s vision of a “little Victorian masterpiece,” Disney’s daughter Diane recalledon the websiteWalt Disney.org blog.
Elizabeth Taylor's girlhood bedroom
English-American icon Elizabeth Taylor began her career as a child actress, appearing in hit films including Lassie and National Velvet. Taylor is pictured here in her childhood bedroom in the 1940s, relaxing with a magazine.
Surrounded by soft toys, family photos and stacks of books and records, Taylor has yet to graduate into the Golden Age Hollywood opulence which would colour her later life.
Elizabeth Taylor's taste for luxury
As an adult, Taylor’s career reached dizzying heights, earning her countless accolades including two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe and a DBE. She also developed an infamous taste for decadent jewellery, high fashion and husbands, seven in all (including Richard Burton twice over).
She is pictured here wearinga dreamy negligéeposing on a bed with floral bedding which resembles her childhood duvet. Perhaps some things didn’t change too much after all!
Julio Iglesias at home in Spain
Legendary Spanish singer-songwriterJulio Iglesiasreleased his first album in 1969. Thanks to the 80 albums that followed, heaccumulated anestimated fortuneof $600 million (£474m) over the decades.
Originally from Madrid, he's pictured here with his wife Isabel at home in Cadiz, Spain in 1974. Their eldest childrenChabeli and Julio Jrride on toys in what appears to be their bedroom or playroom. Their third childEnrique arrived a year later. Now apop star like his father, Enrique is married totennis ace Anna Kournikova. Julio went on to have eight children in total.
Julio Iglesias and his butler
As album sales racked up and his bank balance soared, Iglesias amassed an impressive property portfolio. He's seen here at his Beverly Hills home in 1990 enjoying the trappings ofa lavish lifestyle, chatting on the phone while his butler attends to him.
The romantic crooner famously owns several plots onIndian Creek Island, an ultra-exclusive Miami community known as 'Billionaire Bunker' home to some of the biggest names in sports, politics and business – including the Amazon founder and billionaireJeff Bezos.
Johnny Hallyday's romantic 1960s pad
Johnny Hallyday shocked the French establishment when he hit the airwaves in the early 1960s. Credited with bringing rock and roll to France, his incredible on-stage antics triggered a ban on rock shows that lasted for several months.
The 'French Elvis' and his wifeBulgarian-born French singer Sylvie Vartan were snapped at home in 1965. They remained married until 1980, after which Johnny went on to marry three more times.
Johnny Hallyday's modern Paris home
Hallyday's interior style evolved over his 15-year marriage to Sylvie. As we can see, his home in Paris – where he was pictured in December 1980 after his divorce – was in stark contrast to his plush 1960s home. Gone are the floor-to-ceiling mirrors. Instead, an enormous abstract painting takes pride of place.
By the time of his death in 2017 at age 74, Hallyday also had a home in California, which he shared with his fourth wife and their two daughters, and was domiciled there for tax reasons, according to the BBC.
Arnold Schwarzenegger's Santa Monica hideaway
Back in 1982, Arnold Schwarzenegger was a 35-year-old body builder-turned-actor who had just filmed one of his very first movies, Conan the Barbarian. To promote the film's release, journalists snapped him at home in Santa Monica, noting he was "friendly and obliging" during the day-long shoot.
A well-known animal lover,Schwarzenegger has owned several dogs, a pony and a miniature donkey named Lulu over the years.
Arnold Schwarzenegger relaxes at home
Arnold's Hollywood lifestyle was a far cry from his early life in the town of Thal,Austria. After hitting the big time, he moved into this luxuryhome and decorated it in atypical 1980s style, with puffy leather armchairs, glass-topped tables and pastel hues dominating the space.
Better known today as the former Governor of California,Schwarzenegger was dating JFK's nieceMaria Shriver when this photo was taken in 1982. The pair married in 1986 and had four children together before divorcing in 2021.
Ursula Andress' Ibizan villa
Ursula Andress is best known for her role as Honey Ryder, appearing alongside Sean Connery in the 1962 classicfilmDr No. Born inOstermundigen,Switzerland in 1936, Andress' role inthe first ever James Bond movie sawher emergefrom the ocean wearing a chic white bikini – reportedly causing sales to skyrocket.
These days, Andress lives mostly in Switzerlandbut in the 1970s she owned this idyllic villa in Ibiza, Spain.
Ursula Andress shows her 1970s villa
While Ursula adorned her villa with touches of Hollywood glamour – like these gold lion statues, richly patterned rugs and fur blanket – it's a traditional island home. The thick, whitewashed walls, conical fireplace and rustic built-in shelving are all hallmarks of traditionalIbizan architecture.
She's pictured here in 1978 at the age of 42. Two years latershe gave birth to her first and only child, a son namedDimitri.
Marlene Dietrich's Beverly Hills mansion
Marlene Dietrich enjoyed a successful film career in her native Germany before she emigrated to America in 1930. She invited the cameras into herBeverly Hills home five years later, giving fans a glimpse at her playful interior style, typified by this glam zebra-print throw and what appear to be PVC cushions.
Marlene Dietrich poses in her garden
Marlene shared her home and this large garden with her daughter, Maria. Sadly, the pair did not have a good relationship and the girl's childhood was an unhappy onedespite their opulent home, according to Maria's 2017 memoir.
Born in Berlin in 1901, Dietrichbecame a US citizen in 1937 and entertained Allied troops more than 500 times during the war. However, she later declared:"In my heart I am German, German in my soul."
Carmen Sevilla relaxing in San Juan, Spain
Known as the sweetheart of Spain, entertainer Carmen Sevilla dominated the mid-century Spanish film scene from her 1949 debutJalisco Sings In Seville.She also made a brief splash in Hollywood cinema, starring as Mary Magdalene in the 1961epicKing of Kings.
She's pictured here at home inSan Juan, Alicante, Spain in 1960. However, it was the sheep farm in Herrera del Duque that she shared withher second husbandVicente Patuel that she loved most, describing it as "paradise for us".
Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin's family home
Few love stories have typified the relationship between an artist and his muse more than that of French musician Serge Gainsbourg and British model and actress Jane Birkin. Though tempestuous, their relationship lasted for 12 years –despite an 18-year age gap. Birkin became a household name after she sang the duetJe t'aime... moi non pluswith Gainsbourg, although he'doriginally written the songfor his former girlfriend, actress Brigitte Bardot.
The pair are seen here at home in Paris in 1972 with their baby Charlotte and Jane's daughterKate, whose father was British composer John Barry.
Serge Gainsbourg's stylish music room
Gainsbourg and Birkin split in 1980, although theyreportedly remained friends. He's seen here in the music room of his Rue de Verneuil, Paris home in 1986 – the same year he welcomed a son with model Caroline von Paulus.
Gainsbourg was married twice and fathered four children. After hedied in 1991aged 62, FrenchPresident Francois Mitterrand said that he had "elevated song to the level of art".
Horst Buchholz's Roman rental
Berlin-bornHorst Buchholz was one of just a few German actors to hit the big time on both sides of the Atlantic. He starred in the 1960 cowboy classic The Magnificent Seven, as well as the unforgettable Life is Beautifulin 1997. He continued to act right up until his death in 2003.
While filmingThe Empty Canvas in 1963 Buchholzrented a villa on theVia Cassia in Rome, Italy with his wifeMyriam Bru and their children Christopher and Beatrice. They're seen here relaxing by the villa's pool a few days after filming wrapped.
Karl Lagerfeld's chic Parisian apartment
While we may be more familiar with the sleek black-clad vision of Karl Lagerfeld in his later years, this photo shows the legendary fashion designer at a slightly more relaxed – although still undeniably chic – time in his life.
Pictured at his home in Paris in 1976, the 43-year-old Lagerfeld was by this time the creative head at high-end fashion brand Chloé. The Hamburg-born designer went on to helm Chanel for decades, but he was also fascinated by architecture and interior design and oversaw an opulent four-year renovation of the famous Hôtel de Crillon, Paris.
Luis Miguel Dominguín's Villa Paz
The Villa Paz estate in Cuenca, Castilla La Mancha, was bought by Queen María Cristina de Borbón in the 19th century and handed down to her granddaughter, Spanish infanta and Bavarian princess Paz de Borbón. But despite its illustrious start, the finca is best known as the home of celebrated Spanish bullfighter Luis Miguel Dominguín, seen here at Villa Paz with his son Miguel in 1961.
Luis Miguel Dominguín, Lucia Bosé and children
Spanish bullfighter Luis Miguel Dominguínand his wife Italian actress Lucia Bosé with their children Miguel, Paola and Lucia, their dogs and a baby leopardat their home of Somosaguas, Madrid, Spain in 1967.
Aclose friendof Pablo Picasso,Dominguín's exploits in the ring were immortalised by novelist ErnestHemingway. Heregularly hostedbig names at the farm, including Hollywood starslike Audrey Hepburn and Sofia Lauren and even Apollo XII astronautCharles Conrad. Most famously,Dominguín wasromantically linkedto Golden Age actress Ava Gardner.
Miguel Bosé at home with his dogs
Twenty years later in 1987, Miguel Bosé was an international popstar in his own right. Pictured herein a cream living room and in his garden with his dogs, he had just released his eighth studio album Salamandra in Spain and was 31 years old. Having grown up in the spotlight, he was a trained dancer and began his career as an actor at 15 – he would go on to make 35 big-screen appearances over his career.
In 1975 he shifted to music and signed with CBS Records in 1977, garnering teen idol status across Southern Europe and Latin America with seven top-ten hits. By 1984, he reinvented himself with Bandido achieving massive success with the single 'Amante Bandido'.
Alain Delon's 18th-century priory
Alain Delon made his name starring in some of the most celebrated films of the 1960s and 1970s, including Purple Noon, Rocco and His Brothers and The Leopard. He continued to act until 2019, just five years before his death at the age of 88.
In 1959, he bought an 18th-century priory inTancrou, Seine-et-Marne, France, where he lived for five years with Austrian actressRomy Schneider. The largehome had 12 rooms, a vegetable garden and a grove where Alain kept a horse. Soon after they separated, Delon marriedNathalie Barthélémy and the pair are pictured here at Tancrou with their son Anthony in 1966. Delon spent the last 50 years of his life in a mansion he built inDouchy, 75 miles (120km) southeast of Paris.
Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo in her garden
Married Mexican painters Diego Riveraand Frida Kahlo shared an extraordinary life marked by love, creativityand profound artistic influence. This 1937 photo captures them in the lush garden of Kahlo's iconic home Casa Azul in Mexico City.
Rivera wascelebrated for his monumental murals depicting Mexican history and social issues and becameone of the most influential artists of his time. Kahlo, known for her deeply personal and symbolic self-portraits, gained recognition for exploring identity, painand resilience. Together, they championed Mexican culture, left an indelible mark on 20th-century artand remain symbols of passion, talentand activism.
Brigitte Bardot's St Tropez villa
Perhaps the most internationally famous French actressof the 1950s and 60s, Brigitte Bardot is remembered as much for herbarefoot, carefree style as for her movies, whichincludehits like And God Created Woman andA Very Private Affair.
Born in Paris in 1934, Bardot has lived atLa Madrague, her St Tropez villa (pictured) since 1958. While Architectural Digest describes the home as the "most emblematic villa in Saint-Tropez" it's a popular target for paparazzi and tourists. These days, Bardot is an animal rights activist and splits her time betweenLa Madrague and the more secludedLa Garrigue, where she looks after rescued animals.
