Power lesbians: The female celebs who are out and proud

Portas, best known for her BBC shop-revamp series, first met Rickey seven years ago after an amicable split from her husband of 15 years.

The couple live in Maida Vale, with Portas's two teenage children.

Meanwhile, all of London is fascinated with Jeanette Winterson's love life.

Of particular interest is the novelist's close friendship with Susie Orbach, the feminist psychotherapist who has just ended her 30-year marriage.

The attention is hardly surprising given Winterson's track record: former partners have included some of the most brilliant, influential women of her generation: theatre director Deborah Warner, late literary agent Pat Kavanagh (wife of novelist Julian Barnes) and author and critic Peggy Reynolds.

So why the sudden interest in rumours of the latest A-gay relationship? My theory is it's not just a vicarious thrill.

We're jealous. A new generation of rich, successful gay women are smashing stereotypes with their glamour and spending power. These Power Lesbians simply have a nicer life than the rest of us.

The perks are evident - uncomplicated sex and great conversation, financial independence, foreign travel, probably a second home in the country, plus an introduction to the movers and shakers of London society.

In defiance of the stereotypical male earner and his stay-at-home-with-the-kids wife, still prevalent among the middle classes, both lesbian partners are often influential in their own right: couples such as the BBC sports presenter Clare Balding and her partner, the radio newsreader Alice Arnold; or the novelists Joanna Briscoe and Charlotte Mendelson.

And thanks to advances in fertility treatment, these couples increasingly also have children, creating a whole new class of yummy mummies.

Briscoe and Mendelson have two children, while Five chief executive Dawn Airey has a small child with her partner, TV producer Jacquie Lawrence.

Where once lesbians saw money and luxury as taboo, they have become enthusiastic consumers. The pink pound is no longer just a male thing.

"The myth that lesbians don't spend a significant proportion of their monthly pay packet on travel, leisure, fashion and beauty products has been blown out of the water," said Jane Czyzselska, editor of lesbian glossy magazine Diva.

Winterson talks openly about owning a Georgian house in Spitalfields, a house in the Cotswolds and another in France, while novelist Sarah Waters has bought her girlfriend a flat around the corner from her house.

Many of us were stunned by the portfolio acquired by photographer Annie Leibovitz and the late writer Susan Sontag when it was revealed last week - including a house in upstate New York, a flat overlooking the Seine in Paris; a chef and housekeeper, a handyman brought in from Vermont, a yoga instructor, gardener and nanny.

Leibovitz also bought two adjoining houses in Greenwich Village, then had to buy the next-door property as well for $1.87 million after renovations led to damaging subsidence.

When couples such as chef Allegra McEvedy and Susi Smithers, or writer Ariel Levy and Amy Norquist, celebrate their partnerships the frocks are from Donna Karan, the champagne Cristal.

Like any elite group, London's Power Lesbians are often intimately connected.

Alice Arnold (now with Balding) used to date Sandi Toksvig.

Winterson's ex-partner, Deborah Warner, also lived with actress Fiona Shaw for a long time.

Since then Shaw has been involved with actress Saffron Burrows - they met acting in Jeanette Winterson play, PowerBook, at the National Theatre.

"In the past, we operated from a very small gene pool," laughs Chloe, a theatre manager.

"You still went on holiday with your ex-lover and their new girlfriend because there were very few openly gay women. You had to stay friends.

"Things are changing now because you don't have to stick in the same tight-knit circles."

Things have come a long way in the 12 years since US comedian Ellen DeGeneres had her TV show cancelled after she came out.

Now British gossip mags are totally sympathetic to the relationships of couples such as Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson, or Beth Ditto and her girlfriend Freddie.

Lesbian culture has never been as visible and confident.

Phyllida Lloyd made millions from directing the hit movie, Mamma Mia! and Carol Ann Duffy is the new Poet Laureate. Both women are gay, out and proud.

There's no denying that the new A-gay couples - wealthy, cosmopolitan, assured - are just a damn sight more fun than anyone else.