Eugenia Tymoshenko and her British husband casually chat about their plans
A phone call from Eugenia Tymoshenko warns that she and her British husband Sean Carr will be late for a lunch-time interview with the Post at O’Brien’s – an Irish pub near Kyiv’s main square and one of the couple’s favorite hang-out spots in the city.
When they finally arrive half an hour later, Eugenia, the daughter of firebrand Ukrainian politician Yulia Tymoshenko, is wearing an elegant grey jacket over a white glamour blouse and dark jeans. Sean has on what looks like his every day outfit: blue jeans, a black t-shirt and a biker jacket over a leather vest.
Carr gets notably nervous at the sight of the camera, and Eugenia is a bit strained at first, too: We are not accustomed to being public people yet, they would explain later in the interview.
The couple found themselves in the spotlight of world media just over a year ago, when Eugenia, twenty-five years old at the time, announced that she would marry Carr, a thirty-six-year-old rocker and owner of a small chain of shoe repair shops from Leeds, England.
This was 2005, just after Ukraine’s Orange Revolution, in which Yulia Tymoshenko rose to international status as a modern-day Evita.
The wedding was held last October, at Kyiv’s ancient Vydubytsky monastery. It was covered by major international media, including Britain’s The Times, which featured the newlyweds on the paper’s front page.
But Eugenia and Sean have since shied away from curious journalists, sending a message that they are not flattered by the attention.
“It’s not like we have been avoiding journalists,” explains Sean softly, with his middle-class English manners, which instantly destroy the intimidating first impression given off by his sturdy build, pierced ear and long hair bound in a pony tail.
“Yes, Zhenya [the Russian diminutive for Eugenia] has got a famous mom, but we are not superheroes, and we have not done anything big yet to give interviews,” he says, with Eugenia echoing him.
“I don’t understand why we should be of such interest to the public. We are not doing anything outstanding. That’s why I don’t really feel comfortable talking to journalists,” she says in a polished British accent. The daughter of one of Ukraine’s most powerful politicians, who was named by Forbes magazine as the third most influential woman in the world, went to school in England since the age of 14. Last year, Eugenia last year graduated from the London School of Economics with a degree in Politics and Economics.
The couple’s Ukrainian life
Eugenia and Sean met in spring 2004 at a resort in Egypt. Five months later they were in Ukraine, where they currently live. However, the couple’s long-term plans have apparently not been decided.
“At the moment, there is no time to concentrate on concrete things, as Sean has to adapt to Ukrainian life and see what he could do here,” explains Eugenia, who is considered by many as heir to her mother’s reputed fortune, made during the Dnipropetrovsk native’s gas-trading days in the later 1990s. Eugenia’s mother, however, has denied being a millionaire, most recently during a television appearance on March 13.
The career plans of Tymoshenko’s daughter are also a bit sketchy.
“Ultimately, I would like to do something with exhibiting Ukrainian art,” she says casually.
What both Zhenya and Carr are more talkative and enthusiastic about is Carr’s musical achievements in Ukraine.
“I’ve always liked heavy music and the image of a rocker or a biker. And when I got to know Sean, I liked them even more,” Eugenia confesses. It was she who inspired Sean to form a band in Ukraine and revive his rocker past.
Sean then talked an old band buddy into coming to Ukraine, and they put together an album.
Since then, Eugenia has been the greatest supporter of Death Valley Screamers, in which Sean is the lead singer. Last month, the band did a tour of Eastern Ukraine. Sean describes the people’s reaction as “overwhelming.”
“We wanted to take on the band, but I never expected anything like this. It was absolutely crazy,” says Sean about the warm welcome that Death Valley Screamers received during the tour, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
It’s this kind of adrenaline that has helped the northern Englishman “adjust to a totally different culture.” Regular rehearsals and socializing with Ukrainian bikers has made the transition easier.
“I’ve met some fantastic guys here,” says Sean, who used to attend biker gatherings back home. In Ukraine, Sean didn’t waste much time contacting the organizers of similar events, his young wife points out.
And even though Carr does not speak either Russian or Ukrainian and goes back to England once every six weeks to visit his 10-year old-daughter from a previous relationship, Sean already calls Ukraine “home.”
Eugenia, too, insists that she would not like to go back to London, despite the fact that the underdeveloped credit card service in Kyiv shops drives her crazy.
“I am much happier here, in Ukraine, than I was in London; I had never felt at home there,” she says.
Sean has reconciled himself to a long-term stay in Ukraine, but he says he does not plan on getting Ukrainian citizenship, contradicting statements made earlier this year, including a statement made on March 13, by his mother-in-law that he would.
“In Ukraine, you cannot have a dual citizenship, and giving up a British passport, which gives so much freedom to go places you want to go, is not the smartest thing to do,” says Eugenia, adding that she has no other citizenship other than Ukrainian.
Every day life
Eugenia and Sean say they lead a quiet life in the Ukrainian capital, when they are not traveling to other countries – something they like doing quite often.
“We don’t go out much in Kyiv,” says Eugenia, her hand in Sean’s.
“We come here [to O’Brien’s], Art club 44, and other places with live music. We also frequent the sports bar at River Palace, because we are friends with the manager of the place,” she says.
When not busy rehearsing in the studios and if it’s warm, the couple can also be seen cruising the streets of Kyiv on Sean’s Harley Davidson, which he brought from England. Otherwise, Eugenia and Sean like spending time at their house outside of Kyiv, just several miles away from the home of Eugenia’s famous mother Yulia. Eugenia, who declined to discuss any business interests or assets she may have, said the home was given to them by relatives.
They watch their favorite cartoons on DVD, or Eugenia cooks to her husband’s delight. Sean says his wife cooks the best solyanka [Ukrainian meat soup] and blinchiki [Russian pancakes] he’s ever tried.“And she does absolutely cracking rabbit in olives,” exclaims the Englishman.
