Vanessa Branson

Branson is the youngest child of Eve Branson (née Evette Huntley Flindt; 1924–2021), a former ballet dancer and air hostess,[2] and Edward James "Ted" Branson (1918–2011), a barrister.[3] She was educated at Box Hill School.[4][5] Her brother is founder of Virgin Group, Richard Branson.[6]

Branson opened and ran the Vanessa Devereux Gallery on Blenheim Crescent in London from 1986 until 1991.[7] She had married Robert Devereux in 1983 and they had four children before divorcing in 1997.[5][8]

Between 1999 and 2004, Prue O’Day and Branson curated the Wonderful Fund collection which was first shown at the Museum of Marrackech.[9] Branson is the co-owner of a luxury boutique hotel in Marrakech, El Fenn, which she purchased in 2002 with entrepreneur Howell James.[6][10][11] In 2005 she became the president and founder of the Arts in Marrakech Festival, now known as the Marrakech Biennale.[11][12] In October 2014, Branson was awarded the royal distinction of Officer of the Ouissam Aalouite[13] at the occasion of the ceremony inaugurating the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rabat for her contributions to Moroccan arts and culture.[14]

Branson also owns and runs Eilean Shona, an island on the west coast of Scotland at the entrance to Loch Moidart.[15] In collaboration with the Royal Society of Sculptors, a members-only residency has been created — a month-long opportunity for the winning member to live on the island and reflect upon and respond to the natural environment.[6][16]

Branson's memoir, One Hundred Summers, was published in May 2020.[4][17]

• Branson, Vanessa (19 May 2020). One Hundred Summers. pp. 1–368. ISBN 9781912914142.