Following the likes of Kate Moss, Billie Piper and Her Madgesty the Pop Queen, Keira Knightley is the latest celebrity to shy away from the bright lights of the city and head instead to a rural retreat.

The young starlet was overheard at a magazine's Christmas party saying that she was moving out of the city to, "lead a more domestic life".

She's not the first celeb to opt for an idyllic country lifestyle. Madonna, as usual, was setting the trend years back. Although she has 12 London homes (we're guessing for her trainers and stylists?) she spends the majority of her time in the UK at the 1,132-acre Ashcombe estate on the Wiltshire/Dorset border. The two Kates - Moss and Winslet both head to Gloucestershire.

We can just picture the classic country Christmas scenes now.

(Image: YouTube)