Joan, the beloved wife of Sir Richard Branson, passed away suddenly this week at the age of 80, and The Mirror has compiled a list of everything you need to know.
What is important to know about Joan Branson’s passing, Sir Richard Branson’s “love of his life.”
- Sir Richard Branson announced the death of his beloved wife Joan on Tuesday, November 25. In an Instagram post he wrote: Heartbroken to share that Joan, my wife and partner for 50 years, has passed away. She was the most wonderful mum and grandmum our kids and grandkids could have ever wished for. She was my best friend, my rock, my guiding light, my world. Love you forever, Joan x.”
- The couple met in 1976 and had a 50-year romance, 37 years of that married. Richard revealed how it was “love at first sight” for him. But Joan was initially unimpressed by the dishevelled music mogul. Richard later gushed: “She was unlike any other woman I had ever met. She was beautiful. She was bright. She was witty. She was down to earth. She was fun. And she had eyes made of magic.”
- She eventually embraced Richard’s charms, and the couple later had two children, Holly, 44, and Sam, 40, and wed in 1989 on Necker, the island that Richard had purchased for Joan and would later become their family home. Before all of this, they tragically lost their first daughter, Clare, who was only four days old when she was born in 1979.
- Just days before she died Richard shared a final photo with wife Joan which he posted on social media on November 15. Both are dressed up with glasses of champagne in their hands. As Richard planted a kiss – as he often did – on Joan’s head, he wrote in the caption: “Everyone needs a Joan in their life.”
- Joan was five years older than 75-year-old Richard and passed away at the age of 80. They had been due to celebrate their 50th anniversary of meeting in 2026. Though he cause of death hasn’t been made public, Richard shared that she died “quickly and painlessly” after she stayed in hospital with a back injury.
- Richard claimed in a new statement that after riding his bike in India and getting hurt in a hospital, he ended up on the same side of Joan. We laughed together about how common it was for us to end up together, like teenagers who were delighted to find each other again.
- Then, according to Richard, how they had a “so lovely lunch “ahead of her departure.” He mentioned that she was becoming more and more strong. She gave me a radiant smile that made my face sparkle from the moment I first saw her, a look that had changed my life for the better half. She disappeared suddenly, quickly, and painlessly. And thankfully, I was right there for her. Knowing that we were together is great comfort to us all.
- In terms of how the family is faring since Joan’s passing, Richard continued, “Holly, Sam, and I are all doing our best to smile through the tears and concentrate on the positive things that Joan has brought to our world.” There are numerous. Without her, life will never be the same. But we still have 50 incredible years of memories, filled with love, laughter, kindness, and tears that no words can ever adequately express. The shining star that our family’s universe has always orbited was Joan, the one who defined my entire being. That light has just taken on a new appearance, not gone. It will help us advance. And always, we’ll have her with us.
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