Lydia Yavorskaya, known as Princess Baryatinskaya, was born in 1871 in Kyiv to a police chief. She became a famous actress in Moscow, where her lifestyle, including rumored relationships with writer Chekhov, caused both shock and admiration among the public. Her marriage to Prince Baryatinsky caused outrage at the Russian court.

With her husband's support, Lydia ran her own theater in St. Petersburg, where she staged plays by many avant-garde playwrights. The couple's liberal views became unbearable for the authorities, and they left Russia, traveling through Europe before settling in London. Yavorskaya became a fashion icon and an active suffragist, advocating for women's voting rights. She conquered the English stage, and her production of the first stage version of 'Anna Karenina' in English was a huge success until it was interrupted by the outbreak of World War I.

Yavorskaya raised funds for humanitarian aid in Russia and returned there in 1915, becoming a fierce opponent of the Bolsheviks. After the revolution, she faced arrest, but miraculously escaped back to England. Lydia Yavorskaya passed away in Hove in 1921 and was buried in the local cemetery. Recently, her grave was restored by Mr. John Simpson and his wife.