The Daily Mail and The Daily Beast ran hurried pieces on Benedict Cumberbatch’s fiancée Sophie Hunter yesterday. I’ll admit it, I didn’t know much about her other than she’s a sometimes actress/performer but she’s more into theatre directing. I also knew that she’s in her 30s and she has that aristocratic look that Benedict seems to like. I actually made a conscious effort, months ago, not to learn more about her because… you know, I’m not a stalker. But now that legit media outlets are trying to figure out the mystery of Sophie Hunter, I thought I would partake. Here’s what I learned from the post-engagement analysis.

*Benedict and Sophie’s engagement announcement cost £29 per line of text.

*Sophie is identified as Benedict’s girlfriend of “two years standing.” NOPE. That’s not true. Won’t anyone think of poor Katia?!

*Another friend tells The Mail that Sophie and Benedict have been dating for only five months and “I’ve never known him happier, and she is a wonderful woman — very intelligent. They have known each other a long time, but the romance is recent. It really only took off over the summer, maybe even late summer. It has moved fast, but when something works, it works. They are very good for each other and are very much in love. They have mutual friends and mutual interests in the theatre. It just works. They have clicked. It is lovely news.”

*Sophie once said: “I can definitely relate to that as a trap [of being experimental]…. I’m hoping that if we fail, we fail gloriously. It would be terrible if it was a polite piece of theatre.”

*Sophie is the oldest of three children. Her family is a blend of military, aristocrat and artist. Her grandfather was General Sir James Michael Gow (and aide de camp general to the Queen) and the family is in Debrett’s Peerage.

*Sophie’s family is based in Scotland but Sophie grew up in Hammersmith, West London. Per The Mail: “Her father Charles was an Insurance Executive who went on to become a professional card player and her mother Sophie worked as an administrator, but the couple sadly divorced.”

*She actually is an accomplished theatre director and playwright. She is 36 years old, two years younger than Benedict.

*Sophie studied French and Modern Languages at Oxford and she attended L’École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq in Paris for two years. She also attended the Saratoga International Theatre Institute in New York City.

*Sophie and Benedict first met in 2009, on the set of Burlesque Fairytales.

*While Benedict did go to Scotland to meet Sophie’s mom, The Mail says it wasn’t to ask for the mom’s blessing, maybe? A friend claims: “They just got engaged this week. He didn’t go up to Edinburgh to ask her mum first. He asked her, I think, on Monday, then they rang to put the advert in on Tuesday.” Fast work, Cumber.

*She was already one half of an “It Couple” in London when she dated artist Conrad Shawcross for years in the mid 2000s. They met at Oxford and lived together for a time.

*She’s eschewed fame and publicity many times – she’s never been a club girl and she doesn’t go to the opening of an envelope.

[From The Daily Beast & The Daily Mail & The Daily Mail]

All in all, I think she sounds like a nice person. The worst thing I could possibly say about her is that she seems a bit pretentious and fart-sniffy, you know? But that’s far from the worst quality to have. I like that Benedict is with someone his age, someone with the same kind of life experiences and someone whom he’s known for a while. Would I love it if this crashed and burned? Of course. But I doubt it will crash and burn. I think they’re probably pretty happy.

Oh, and The Daily Mail’s sources say that even thought Bendy is booked up solid through 2016, he and Sophie will probably find a quiet moment to marry in the next year. Either that or it will be a very long engagement. Who knows?

Photos courtesy of WENN, PCN & Getty.