When Reese Witherspoon was young, her grandmother impressed upon her the importance of self-respect and staying strong – valuable lessons that have helped to make her one of Hollywood’s highest-paid actresses. Now, as global ambassador for Avon cosmetics, she wants to help other women harness their inner strength to escape the trap of domestic violence

The first time I find myself face to face with Reese Witherspoon we are at the Houses of Parliament on a sunny but crisply cold morning. Everyone is swathed in their winter wardrobes, apart from Reese, who is wearing an exquisite – but
bone-chillingly sleeveless – Roland Mouret dress and traversing the flagstones of Westminster Hall in spiky Martin Margiela heels.

It’s the day when the Prime Minister will later, rather embarrassingly, confuse Reese with her friend and fellow actress Renée Zellweger. But actually, when you’ve witnessed full-on Hollywood glamour teleported into the hub of British politics, you can understand why Gordon Brown found himself momentarily flummoxed. It’s not so much that Reese and Renée are both petite and blonde and have names beginning with R; more that Reese and the PM occupy parallel universes. He’s far too dour and serious to cross the threshold into her glitzy world, which begs the question, why is she, as one of the most successful Hollywood actresses of her generation, so eager to dip an immaculately pedicured toe into his?

Now 33, Reese made her name as ditzy Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, but cemented her acting credentials five years ago with her Oscar-winning performance in Walk the Line. Her role as June Carter Cash, wife of the country music legend Johnny, catapulted her to the top of the Hollywood pay league, outstripping Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz, and she commands a reputed $20 million (£12 million) a film.

Like many Hollywood A-listers, she is keen to ‘give back’. Two years ago she became global ambassador for Avon, and it is in this capacity that she is in London, to raise awareness for a new campaign the company is launching with the domestic violence charity Refuge.

In a Westminster committee room, she listens transfixed as Wendy Turner Webster – the television presenter and younger sister of Anthea Turner – speaks about her violent first marriage. It’s a harrowing and sadly all too familiar tale. In her early 20s, Wendy, now 42, spent five years married to a man who beat her and made her feel worthless. She found it difficult to leave him because she felt trapped. As Wendy (who today is thankfully happily remarried with two children) recalls how it felt to be stripped of dignity and confidence, the pained sympathy on Reese’s face is evident.

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Actress Reese Witherspoon, as honorary chairwoman of Avon Foundation, spoke to British politicians earlier this month in conjunction with charity Refuge’s campaign launch, Four Ways To Speak Out, about domestic violence against women.

According to Avon, two women are killed each week in England and Wales by current or former partners, and one in four women will be victims of domestic violence at some point. However, Avon research shows that most people don’t know of anyone who is suffering from such abuse, due mostly to the shame felt by surviving victims, which keeps them from talking about it. It is a well-kept secret that shouldn’t be.

Witherspoon has called upon the UK government to improve services for victims. “There remains what can seem like an impenetrable wall of silence around violence,” she said, “and we must all play a role in breaking this silence.”

Refuge’s campaign to raise awareness of domestic abuse is their latest attempt to keep domestic violence on the political agenda. You can add your name to the petition at Four Ways To Speak Out.

From Look to the Stars

I have updated the gallery today with all the missing events of Reese that she attended from the later part of this year – we’re all caught up on the 2009 events now!

There is going to be more changes with this site coming around – so stay tuned!

Gallery Links:
- Public Appearances > Appearances From 2009 > Avon Foundation Celebrates “Champions Who Change Women’s Lives”
- Public Appearances > Appearances From 2009 > Reese Witherspoon And Avon Launch “In Bloom By Reese Witherspoon”
- Public Appearances > Appearances From 2009 > Reese Witherspoon Reveals Wall Of Silence Around Domestic Violence

Hollywood stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon are still very much a couple, their representatives have confirmed.

The statement comes in the wake of reports to the contrary that emerged over the weekend.

A source close to the Oscar-winning actress told People that Reese and Jake had split, although no further details were given.

“It’s not true,” said reps Nanci Ryder – who works for Reese – and Carrie Byalick. “They are still together.”

The couple, who are known for keeping their private life out of the public eye, were first romantically linked after starring in the 2007 film Rendition.

Speaking about her boyfriend last year, the mum-of-two said: “He’s very supportive. Suffice to say I’m very happy in life and I’m very lucky to have a lot of really supportive people around me who care very much for me….”

Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal have called it quits, a source confirms to JustJared.com.

Reese, 33, and Jake, 28, have been a couple since starring together in the 2007 drama thriller Rendition.

Reese was singing the praises of Jake as late as last month in the November issue of InStyle: “We spend the weekends outside L.A, in Ojai, where I have a farmhouse. We have chickens and we grow cucumbers and tomatoes. I love it. It reminds me of where I grew up in Tennessee.”

Just wanted to post real quick to say that I will be updating this site again… I took a couple months off from this website to try to deal with real life stuff and decided to stay on the site as webmaster… Please come back here for all the latest stuff that was happening with Reese, thanks for sticking in there with us!

She has it all – a successful Hollywood career, famous boyfriend and beautiful kids – but when it comes down to it, Reese Witherspoon says she thinks of herself as a single mom making it through the day.

“It isn’t anything I chose in life, it just sort of happened that way,” the Walk the Line Oscar winner, 33, told PEOPLE at Tuesday’s Avon Foundation for Women charity event at New York’s Cipriani 42nd Street, where she was the honorary co-chair. “We all just do the best we can. We’re all just people trying to get through life however we can … I’m thrilled to be any sort of inspiration to anyone!”

Most inspiring is that the foundation she works with raises millions for women with breast cancer and victims of domestic violence.

Witherspoon, who has moved on from former husband Ryan Phillippe to a supportive boyfriend in Jake Gyllenhaal, also spoke about the new Avon fragrance she has launched, In Bloom.

“I just wanted a scent memory of my childhood in Tennessee growing up,” she says. “A lot of it is white flowers and gardenias and things that I grew up in the backyard loving. Things that I smelled on my mother and my grandmother that really inspired a feeling of being back home.”