When it comes to business, Richard Branson has been around for a while, and he's done well. Equally striking is the closeness he has with his wife. Meet Richard Branson's wife, Joan Templeman.
Richard Branson, who turns 72 on July 18, 2022, is well respected for his excellent business management. He was a high school dropout who started Virgin Group and ran hundreds of different companies.
Behind Branson's great company comes a successful marriage. The well-known British businessman happily married his lovely wife, Joan Templeman.
WHO IS RICHARD BRANSON'S WIFE, JOAN TEMPLEMAN
Templeman, born in Glasgow, Poland, in 1948, came from a background with its fair share of poverty. Her father was a ship carpenter who had to provide for her and her six siblings.
Due to her difficult childhood, Templeman learned to be independent at a young age. To make ends meet, she worked many jobs, including running an antique shop.
In 1966, she married Ronnie Leahy, the man she had been in love with since childhood. But unfortunate circumstances in their union caused them to split in 1978, after 12 years of marriage.
HOW LONG HAVE THEY BEEN TOGETHER?
Templeman had a second chance at love when he met Branson in 1978 at The Manor, where the latter had established his live-in recording studio for Virgin Records.
Branson's workplace and Templeman's antique shop were both adjacent to one another. The renowned business mogul and adventurer, who was 27 then, said he fell in love with Templeman at first sight.
It seems that Branson's feelings were not reciprocated since Templeman did not pick up on them at their first meeting. It took some time for the lovestruck businessman to get the courage to see her again.
Branson, who used to live on a boat, revealed that he went to great lengths to win her over, including following her to New York and convincing her to spend the weekend with him at Necker Island, to which Templeman agreed.
Templeman and Branson tied the knot in 1989. Since then, they have remained deeply in love, contributing to their relationship's success. In 2020, Branson penned a lengthy love letter to his wife, which read:
"Far beyond record titles, I owe a lot to Joan. She's my wife of 31 years, partner of 45 years, the mother of our two wonderful children, and my constant rock."
Branson thanked Templeman for supporting his aspirations, notably his lifelong dream of traveling into space through his other company Virgin Galactic. He described his longtime wife as "the most understanding woman on Earth."
Branson's daughter became the vice president of the Virgin Group.
Richard Branson and Joan Templeman attend the 2016 Pre-GRAMMY Gala and Salute to Industry Icons honoring Irving Azoff on February 14, 2016, in Beverly Hills, California. | Source: Getty Images
DO THEY HAVE CHILDREN?
Joan Templeman and Richard Branson have two children: Holly, born in November 1981, and Sam, born in August 1985. The power couple is also proud grandparents to Sam and Holly's children.
Holly, 40, graduated from University College London with a medical degree and worked as a junior doctor at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
Branson's daughter became the vice president of the Virgin Group. She is the founder of Big Change, a charitable organization for young people in the United Kingdom.
She has been married to her long-term boyfriend, Freddie Andrews, since 2011. They have twin children, Artie and Etta, born in 2012, and Lola, born in 2019.
On the other hand, Sam is an actor and co-founder of Sundog Pictures. He attended Le Cordon Bleu London culinary school after graduating from St Edward's School in Oxford in 2003.
Two years later, Sam enrolled at Musicians Institute in the United States. In 2006, he made his acting debut in the sci-fi film "Superman Returns" and "Requiem for Krypton: Making Superman Returns."
In 2008, he was also included in the TV movie documentary "Bransons: Come Hell or High Water." Sam, an adventurer like his father, participated in several environmental expeditions, including one to the Arctic.
The 37-year-old actor married actress and model Isabella Calthorpe in 2013, and they have two children: daughter Eva-Deia, born in 2015, and son Bluey, born in 2017.
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