James Middleton | |
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Born | James William Middleton 15 April 1987 Reading, Berkshire, England |
Alma mater | |
Occupation | Businessman |
Spouse | Alizée Thevenet (m. 2021) |
Partner | Donna Air (2013–2018) |
Parents |
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Family | Middleton |
James William Middleton (born 15 April 1987) [1] is an English entrepreneur. He is the brother of Catherine, Princess of Wales.
Born in Reading, Berkshire, Middleton was educated at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne. He briefly attended the University of Edinburgh before dropping out and founding a cake-making business. Middleton began receiving media attention during his eldest sister's relationship and subsequent marriage to Prince William. In 2013, he started a personalised greeting card company, Boomf. Middleton is a mental health advocate and has spoken about his experiences with major depressive disorder. [2] Middleton and his dog, Ella, are ambassadors for the Pets As Therapy charity. [3]
James William Middleton was born on 15 April 1987 at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, [1] the youngest child and only son of Michael Middleton (born 1949), a former British Airways flight dispatcher, [4] and Carole Middleton (born 1955), a former flight attendant. [5] [6] [7] His father came from a line of solicitors who resided in Leeds, West Yorkshire. His great-grandmother, Olive Middleton, was a member of the Lupton family who were landed gentry. [8] [9] [10] His mother's family were labourers and miners from County Durham. [7] [11] [12] Shortly before his birth, Middleton's parents founded Party Pieces, a mail-order party supply company, estimated to be worth £30 million, [13] though accounts show that the company has lost £1.068 million since its inception. [14] His elder sisters are Catherine (born 1982) and Philippa (born 1983). [15] The family resided in Bradfield Southend, Berkshire, before moving to the nearby village of Bucklebury in 1995. [16] [17] [18] Middleton was educated at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne, and Marlborough College. [19] [20] In 2006, he attended the University of Edinburgh, studying environmental resources management before dropping out a year later. [21] [22]
Middleton's cake-making business, which is now defunct, was inspired by reading that a mother's baking is a highly evocative childhood memory. [21] He supplied baking kits so home bakers would be able to get all the ingredients in one place for adventurous creations such as "football cakes". [21] He started baking in the family kitchen and expanded into a freight container and converted barns. [21] Themed birthday cake baking kits were distributed by his parents' company, Party Pieces. [21] [23]
Themed cakes were later provided for companies such as Jigsaw, 3 and Ralph Lauren. [21] Middleton caused "shudders" at Buckingham Palace after taking part in a Hello magazine photoshoot for which he was commissioned to bake 21 cakes commemorating its 21st birthday, each iced with one of the magazine's front covers – amongst them, several members of the royal family, including Diana, Princess of Wales. [24] The business won Smarta 100 and Haines Watts Young Entrepreneur awards. [25] In April 2011 he registered three businesses: Nice Cakes, Nice Wine and Nice Group London and planned to expand the Cake Kit Company. [21] [24] The Cake Kit Company dissolved in 2015. [26]
In 2013, Middleton founded Boomf, a company that makes personalised marshmallows and greeting cards. [27] [28] In 2015, the company raised £700 in funding, and was valued at £10m. [29] Boomf made a loss of £3 million between 2015 and 2018. [30] Hedge fund manager James Matthews paid Middleton €110,000 for 12,800 Boomf shares. [31] In 2019, Middleton announced that the company had reached profitability with an income of £176,000 in the previous year. [32] Boomf raised $1m of funding in 2021, with plans to expand its product range. [33] The company was sold later that year. In May 2020, Middleton launched Ella & Co, a mail order dog food company that offers freeze-dried, raw, organic dog food. [34]
Middleton is dyslexic. [35] Middleton read from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible at the 2011 wedding of his sister Catherine to Prince William. [36] In 2019, he disclosed his struggles with depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which he attributed to public scrutiny from age 23 as a result of his eldest sister's relationship. [37] [38] He sought treatment in 2017, undertaking cognitive behavioral therapy. [38] [39] Middleton also spent "restorative time" at the Glen Affric Estate, owned by his sister Philippa's father-in-law. [38] [40] [41] In the same year, he penned a column in the Daily Mail about mental health. [42] [43]
Middleton is an ambassador for the Pets As Therapy charity, and has credited his dog, Ella, for helping him through his depression. [44] [39] He breeds dogs, owning six, as well as one rescue lamb. [45] [46] [47] Middleton also keeps bees on the grounds of Bucklebury Manor. [48] [49] In April 2020, he founded the Paw Print Fund in aid of animal welfare charities. [46]
Middleton was in a relationship with actress Donna Air from 2013 to 2018. [50] Middleton met French financial analyst Alizée Thevenet in 2018, and announced their engagement in September 2019. [51] [52] They planned to wed in summer 2020 but postponed the event twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [53] The couple married on 11 September 2021, in Bormes-les-Mimosas, France; his wife having worn the 1980 wedding dress belonging to Carole Middleton, her mother-in-law. [54] [55]
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A cookie is a baked or cooked snack or dessert that is typically small, flat and sweet. It usually contains flour, sugar, egg, and some type of oil, fat, or butter. It may include other ingredients such as raisins, oats, chocolate chips, nuts, etc.
Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood, was the only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. She was the sister of kings Edward VIII and George VI, and aunt of Queen Elizabeth II. In the First World War, she performed charity work in support of servicemen and their families. She married Henry Lascelles, Viscount Lascelles, in 1922. Mary was given the title of Princess Royal in 1932. During the Second World War, she was Controller Commandant of the Auxiliary Territorial Service. The Princess Royal and the Earl of Harewood had two sons, George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood, and The Honourable Gerald Lascelles.
The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884 it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine and was renamed Yorkshire College. It became part of the federal Victoria University in 1887, joining Owens College and University College Liverpool. In 1904 a royal charter was granted to the University of Leeds by King Edward VII.
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James Spencer Matthews is a British former professional racing driver, hedge fund manager, and heir to the Scottish feudal title of Laird of Glen Affric. In 2017, he married Pippa Middleton, the younger sister of Catherine, Princess of Wales and sister in law of William, Prince of Wales.
Bartolo "Buddy" Valastro Jr. is an American baker and reality television personality of Italian heritage. He is the owner of Carlo's Bakery, as well as the face of Buddy V's Ristorante. Valastro is best known as the star of the reality television series Cake Boss, which premiered in April 2009. He has also starred in Next Great Baker (2010), Kitchen Boss (2011), Buddy's Bakery Rescue (2013), Bake You Rich (2013) and Bakery Boss (2013).
The wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton took place on Friday, 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London, England. The groom was second in the line of succession to the British throne. The couple had been in a relationship since 2003.
Philippa Charlotte Matthews is an English socialite, author and columnist. She is the younger sister of Catherine, Princess of Wales.
Carole Elizabeth Middleton is a British businesswoman. She is the mother of Catherine, Princess of Wales, Philippa Matthews, and James Middleton.
The Lupton family in Yorkshire achieved prominence in ecclesiastical and academic circles in England in the Tudor era through the fame of Roger Lupton, provost of Eton College and chaplain to Henry VII and Henry VIII. By the Georgian era, the family was established as merchants and ministers in Leeds. Described in the city's archives as "landed gentry, a political and business dynasty", they had become successful woollen cloth merchants and manufacturers who flourished during the Industrial Revolution and traded throughout northern Europe, the Americas and Australia.
Frances Elizabeth Lupton was an Englishwoman of the Victorian era who worked to open up educational opportunities for women. She married into the politically active Lupton family of Leeds, where she co-founded Leeds Girls' High School in 1876 and was the Leeds representative of the North of England Council for Promoting the Higher Education of Women.
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Boomf is a UK company which delivers personalised gifts through the letterbox. The company launched in 2013 selling personalised marshmallows with photos printed on top. Boomf now offer a range of gifts, the Boomf 'bomb' and the Boomf 'Flutter'.
Michael Francis Middleton is a British businessman. He is the father of Catherine, Princess of Wales, Philippa Matthews and James Middleton.
The Luptons of Leeds were landed gentry; a political and business dynasty.
Her paternal great-grandmother, Olive Lupton, was a member of the wealthy Lupton family, woolen manufacturers and members of the landed gentry from Leeds. The Lupton family trust would fund the private education of Kate and her siblings.
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