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Peter Halsey Cook is best known to many people as the former husband of supermodel Christie Brinkley. But he is also a longtime Hamptons architect and builder with decades of work in high-end homes. His life has mixed design, family, public love stories, and public mistakes. This article gives a clear, easy-to-read picture of who he is, how he became known, and what his life looks like today.
Quick Bio: Peter Halsey Cook
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Peter Halsey Cook |
| Known for | Hamptons architect; former husband of Christie Brinkley |
| Born | 1959, New Jersey, USA |
| Profession | Architect; owner of a residential architecture firm in Water Mill, NY |
| Notable family link | Ex-husband of model Christie Brinkley (married 1996; divorced 2008) |
| Children | Father of Sailor Brinkley-Cook; adoptive father of Jack Brinkley-Cook |
| Later relationship | Married Alba Jancou in Capri, Italy, in September 2023 |
| Base | The Hamptons, New York (Water Mill/Bridgehampton area) |
Early life and career
Peter Cook was born in New Jersey in 1959. He later built his career in the Hamptons area of Long Island, New York. Reports and local profiles describe a family history that goes back many generations on the East End, which helps explain why he focused on houses in that area. In interviews with local press, Cook has spoken about the long roots of his family in the region and his interest in the traditional shingle-style homes that are common there.
Cook started his own firm and designed custom, high-end homes for Hamptons clients. Listings and local business pages place his firm in Water Mill, and they describe the practice as a full-service residential architecture office. These sources show an active professional footprint beyond the tabloid headlines.
Meeting and marrying Christie Brinkley
Cook met Christie Brinkley years before they began dating. The pair reconnected in the mid-1990s. They announced their engagement in August 1996 and married on September 21, 1996. The marriage brought Cook into the public eye far beyond the design world. Together, they had one daughter, Sailor Lee Brinkley-Cook, born in 1998. Cook also adopted Brinkley’s son, Jack, who was born in 1995 from her prior relationship.
For some time, the couple were a high-profile Hamptons family. Photos of their life and of their children often appeared in lifestyle magazines. But headlines changed in 2006, when news broke of Cook’s affair with a then-18-year-old assistant, Diana Bianchi. The scandal led to a very public divorce process that lasted into 2008.
The divorce and public scandal
The divorce became a major news story in the summer of 2008. Testimony in open court described Cook’s affair with the 18-year-old assistant and other behavior the model found troubling. Several national and local outlets covered each day of the trial. In one widely reported moment, Brinkley explained she learned of the affair in 2006 when a police officer who was the young woman’s stepfather spoke to her before a graduation speech in the Hamptons. The story, the court testimony, and the fallout stayed in the headlines for weeks.
The couple reached a settlement in July 2008, and sources note the divorce became final later that year. Accounts vary on the exact date, but the timeline is clear: separation was announced in 2006, and the divorce wrapped in 2008. Brinkley retained custody of the children. Years later, Brinkley has spoken again about that period, including in 2025 interviews and her memoir, describing how painful and public the process felt.
Life and work after the divorce
After the divorce, Cook returned to a more private life in design and real estate in the Hamptons. Business pages and directories show that his firm continued to operate in Water Mill, taking on custom residential work. His social media and local profiles present him as a hands-on architect focused on the East End market.
In his personal life, Cook later became engaged to Alba Jancou in 2019. The couple married in Capri, Italy, in September 2023, with photos and details published by People. This marked a new chapter for Cook many years after his headline-making split from Brinkley.
Relationship with the children
Brinkley has three children: Alexa Ray (with Billy Joel), Jack (with Richard Taubman, later adopted by Cook), and Sailor (with Cook). Public profiles and features about Brinkley’s family make it clear that Sailor is Cook’s biological daughter and that he legally adopted Jack during the marriage. Sailor has followed her mother into modeling, and Jack has kept a lower profile, working on projects and business ideas of his own.
Professional profile: what kind of architecture?
Cook’s work fits the high-end Hamptons market: large houses, often in shingle style, with lots of natural light, dormers, and large gathering spaces. Older coverage about his portfolio and background notes that he apprenticed with respected local architects and then formed his own practice, which is common for designers who become known in a single region. While his client list is mostly private, the location of the firm and business listings confirm his continuing focus on custom residential projects in Water Mill and the surrounding towns.
Public image: between talent and turbulence
It is fair to say Cook’s public image has two parts. On the one hand, he is a skilled local architect with many years of experience building luxury homes in a very competitive market. On the other hand, the 2006 affair and the 2008 trial placed him at the center of tabloid attention, and that story is the one most people remember. In recent years, Brinkley has looked back on that period in new interviews and in her 2025 memoir, again putting Cook’s past behavior in the news cycle.
Even so, today’s reports about Cook mostly focus on his work and his later marriage. This shows how public figures can, over time, move into quieter lives while still being best known for one major chapter in the past.
Why his story still draws interest
People remain curious about Cook because his life crossed with one of the most famous models of the late 20th century. The pair’s divorce also touched on topics that get strong attention: power, age gaps, and how a family deals with betrayal in public. At the same time, Cook’s steady work in the Hamptons shows a different side, one that is professional, local, and far from the spotlight.
Final thoughts
Peter Halsey Cook’s life shows two tracks running at the same time. One track is his professional life, a local architect who designs and builds luxury homes in one of the most famous beach communities in the United States. The other track is his public story, a marriage to Christie Brinkley, a painful scandal, and a loud divorce that took place in full view of the media. Both tracks are part of who he is.
Today, the headlines are quieter. Reports place him back at work in the Hamptons and married since 2023 to Alba Jancou. Meanwhile, Christie Brinkley has shared her own view of the past in new interviews and in her memoir, which naturally puts Cook’s name back in the news from time to time. But the day-to-day reality for Cook seems to be what it was before the tabloid storm, planning and building homes for clients on the East End.
Frequently Asked Questions
1) Who is Peter Halsey Cook?
He is an American architect based in the Hamptons. He became widely known after marrying supermodel Christie Brinkley in 1996.
2) When was he born?
He was born in 1959 in New Jersey, USA.
3) What is his profession?
Cook is the owner of a residential architecture firm in Water Mill, New York, focusing on custom homes.
4) How did he meet Christie Brinkley?
They first met years earlier, then reconnected in the mid-1990s, got engaged in August 1996, and married in September 1996.
5) Do they have children together?
Yes. Their daughter, Sailor, was born in 1998. Cook also adopted Brinkley’s son, Jack, who was born in 1995.
6) Why did they divorce?
News of Cook’s affair with an 18-year-old assistant became public in 2006. The divorce case went to trial in 2008 and ended that year.
7) How did Christie Brinkley learn about the affair?
Reports say a local police officer, who was the teen’s stepfather, told her before a graduation speech in 2006; this was later discussed in court and in Brinkley’s memoir and interviews.
8) What has Cook done since the divorce?
He kept working in architecture in the Hamptons and maintained his firm in Water Mill.
9) Is Peter Cook married now?
Yes. He married Alba Jancou in Capri, Italy, in September 2023.
10) Where does he live and work today?
Cook is associated with the Hamptons area, especially Water Mill and Bridgehampton, where his firm operates and where many of his projects are located.
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