Sir Richard Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate who co-founded the Virgin Group in 1970. He started with a magazine and a mail-order record business and built a brand that has included an airline, a record label, a rail company and a space tourism firm. He was knighted in 2000. This biography follows his life and career up to November 2026.
Richard Branson at a Glance
| Full name | Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson |
| Born | 18 July 1950, Blackheath, London, England |
| Age | 76 (as of November 2026) |
| Profession | Business magnate and founder of the Virgin Group |
| Education | Scaitcliffe School; Stowe School (until age 16) |
| First business | Student magazine (1966) |
| Key ventures | Virgin Records (1972); Virgin Atlantic (1984); Virgin Mobile (1999); Virgin Galactic (2004) |
| Honour | Knight Bachelor (30 March 2000); Time 100 (2007) |
| Spouse | Joan Templeman (married 1989; died November 2025) |
Early Life and Education
Richard Branson was born in Blackheath, London, the son of Edward James Branson, a barrister, and Evette Huntley Branson, a ballet dancer and air hostess. He has two younger sisters. He went to Scaitcliffe School and then Stowe School, which he left at 16. He has dyslexia and did poorly at school, and on his last day his headmaster told him he would either end up in prison or become a millionaire. His mother was an entrepreneur who made and sold wooden tissue boxes and waste paper bins.
Early Business Career
After failed attempts to grow and sell Christmas trees and budgerigars, Branson launched a magazine called Student in 1966, at the age of 16. In 1970 he set up a mail-order record business, and in 1972 he opened a chain of record stores that became Virgin Megastores. In the same year he launched the record label Virgin Records, using money earned from the store. The name "Virgin" was suggested by an early employee because they were all new to business. The label signed the Sex Pistols, whom other companies were reluctant to sign, and went on to sign artists including the Rolling Stones, Peter Gabriel and UB40, becoming the world's largest independent record label.
Virgin Atlantic and Expansion
Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Cargo were started in 1984, and Virgin Holidays followed in 1985. In 1992 Branson sold the Virgin label to EMI for £500 million to keep the airline afloat, and he has said that he wept when the sale was completed. He created V2 Records in 1996 to re-enter the music business. Disputes with British Airways in the early 1990s led to a so-called "dirty tricks" campaign, which British Airways settled. In 1997 he founded the Virgin Rail Group to bid for passenger rail franchises during the privatisation of British Rail, and he launched Virgin Mobile in 1999 and Virgin Blue in Australia in 2000. In 2004 he announced Virgin Galactic, a space tourism company that licenses spaceplane technology.
Records, Philanthropy and Honours
Branson was knighted by Charles, Prince of Wales, on 30 March 2000 for "services to entrepreneurship". Since 1985 he has made several world-record attempts, and in January 1991 he crossed the Pacific from Japan to Arctic Canada in a balloon, covering 6,700 miles. In 2007 he announced the Virgin Earth Challenge, a $25 million prize for a commercially viable way of removing greenhouse gases, and on 18 July 2007 he helped launch the Elders, a group of global leaders announced by Nelson Mandela that works on difficult conflicts. Time named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2007.
Personal Life
Branson married Kristen Tomassi in 1972, and they divorced in 1979. He met Joan Templeman in 1976, and they married on Necker Island in 1989. They had a daughter who lived for four days, and then a daughter and a son, Holly and Sam. Branson announced Joan's death at the age of 80 on 25 November 2025, saying he was "heartbroken".
Legacy
Branson turned a student magazine into one of the world's best-known brands, and his taste for adventure and publicity has made him a public figure on a scale few business leaders reach. This biography draws on [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Branson) and news coverage of his [wife's death](https://www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/sir-richard-branson-s-wife-joan-templeman-dies-aged-80).
