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Annabelle Neilson

English socialite (1969–2018) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Annabelle Neilson
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Iona Annabelle Neilson (31 March 1969 – 12 July 2018) was an English socialite, fashion model, author, and television personality. She was best known as the longtime muse of Alexander McQueen, as an original main cast member on the Bravo reality television series Ladies of London (2014–2015), and as the writer of the Me Me Me book series.

Quick Facts Born, Died ...

Neilson was, briefly, the first wife of Nathaniel Rothschild, 5th Baron Rothschild,[a] a member of the Rothschild banking family of England. During their marriage, her courtesy title was The Honourable Mrs. Rothschild.

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Early life

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Neilson[2][3] was born into a wealthy, upper-class, aristocratic family[4][5][6][7] at King's College Hospital in London, England, on 31 March 1969,[8][9][10] as the middle child and younger daughter[11][12] to Maxwell Frederick "Max" Neilson,[13] an investment and property advisor, and his Italian noble wife,[14][15] Marchesa[c] Elizabetta Maria "Elizabeth" (née Campus Di Santinelli),[4][5] an interior designer.[16][17] Her birth was registered in Lambeth, South London in April 1969.[18] She had an elder sister.[19][20] an artist,[21]

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Neilson (right) and her elder sister

Neilson—until the age of sixteen—divided her time between her family's SW3 home, 19 Tedworth Square in Chelsea, London, and her family's country estate, Chilterns House in the Chiltern Hills, near Oxfordshire.[22][23]

Neilson was a horse rider between the ages of four and sixteen.[4][24] As a child, her favourite author was Beatrix Potter.[25]

Education

Neilson attended Lady Eden's School on Victoria Road, Kensington, where she was held back a year. Aged eleven, she joined her sister at Cobham Hall School, a private day and boarding school, housed in Cobham Hall in Gravesend, Kent, where she caught up again.[25] Her school friends included the Japanese-born American jewellery designer Francesca Amfitheatrof.[26][27] She finished her education with no qualifications at sixteen.[28]

1985 attack in Australia

Neilson was randomly attacked by a man during her gap year in Perth, Western Australia, at the age of sixteen. She was tied to a tree and continuously beaten during the attack, which lasted two hours before she broke free. She received facial reconstructive surgery in the aftermath, having been left disfigured.[29][30][31] She fell into a deep depression and became a heroin addict; she was sober by the end of her twenties. She later said her addiction saved her "because otherwise I would have killed myself,".[32][33] Her attacker was later convicted of killing three women.[34][35]

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Career

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Neilson launched her professional career as a fashion model during her early twenties.[36][37] She became a muse[38] for the fashion designer Alexander McQueen at 22, and continued so until his death in 2010.[39][40][4][41] She was a muse for the fashion designer John Galliano.[42][43][44][45] She walked[46] in fashion shows for McQueen[47][48] and Galliano[49][50] throughout the 1990s and early 2000s.[51][52]

Neilson made an unsuccessful attempt at becoming an actress in 2000. She took several screen tests for films.[25] She starred in a film to advertise the Alexander McQueen men's collection. The role required her to be nude and to simulate sexual intercourse with a male model.[53]

Neilson appeared twice in the 2000 Vogue[54] portfolio, How Many People Does It Take to Make a Dress?,[55] where she depicted designers and their support groups.[56] She posed for Lee Jenkins wearing Sarabande's Look 42 for the magazine's March 2007 issue.[57]

Neilson was signed to the Sarah Doukas-founded modelling agency Storm Management in 2007.[28][58]

Neilson worked as a businesswoman in 2007, recruiting business for the American businessman Carlos Almada's private members' club Automat on Berkeley Square. She had her business card inscribed to read: 'Annabelle Neilson, Marketing Development Manager'.[28]

Neilson was the creator and writer of the PBS SoCAL arts and culture documentary series Voces on PBS (2012–2019). The series explored the diversity of the Latino cultural experience and was produced by Latino Public Broadcasting.[59]

Neilson was an original main cast member on the Bravo (U.S.) reality television series Ladies of London.[60][61][62][63] The series chronicled the lives of six women who lived in London, as they balanced their social lives, businesses and families.[64][65][66][67][68] The first series premiered on 2 June 2014,[4] with Juliet Angus,[69] Caprice Bourret,[70][71] Marissa Hermer,[72] Noelle Reno,[73][74][75] and Caroline Stanbury,[76] while Luke Henderson served as a recurring cast member.[77][78] The debut episode attracted 1.17 million U.S. viewers.[79] She quickly became a fan favourite.[80][81] She published blogs on BravoTV.com[82] weekly.[83][84][85] The finale episode was broadcast on 21 July 2014.[86] In March 2015, the network renewed the show for a second series.[87] She returned to the main cast.[88] The second series premiered on 7 September 2015.[89] She announced her departure from the show in a post to her official Instagram account[d] on 9 November 2015,[90] immediately following the airing of the series two finale.[91] She appeared in eighteen episodes.[92]

Neilson mentored the fashion designer Conchita Pérez for Pérez's fashion show, which took place in East London.[5][93][25] She often modelled at London Fashion Week.[94]

Neilson appeared on the ITV daytime magazine programme This Morning, co-guesting alongside her Ladies of London co-stars: Angus, Hermer, Montagu, Reno, and Stanbury.[95]

Neilson was the author of the Me Me Me children's and teenage, and picture book series. The first instalment, Angry Me (ISBN 9780992872878), was published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 18 August 2015.[96][37][97] The second and third instalments, Messy Me (ISBN 9781910884010) and Dreamy Me (ISBN 9781910884027), were both published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 19 January 2016.[98] Angry Me was about her anger surrounding her struggles with dyslexia, Messy Me was about her sister, and Dreamy Me was about the fantasies she had during her recovery following her horse riding accident.[99][37] There were fifteen unpublished works from the series,[100] including Happy Me,[37] ADD Me (about her experience of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), Mellow Yellow,[101] Giggle Me,[102] Bad Me,[103] and Imaginative Me (about Alexander McQueen).[104]

Neilson wrote an autobiography, McQueen and I (ISBN 9780753555125), which was published by Virgin Books in 2016. The book focused on her life with Alexander McQueen.[105][106]

Neilson made her final on-screen appearance in a cameo role during the biographical documentary film McQueen. The documentary focused on the life and career of Alexander McQueen, and was released during the 2018 Tribeca Festival, on 22 April.[107]

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Charity work

Neilson modelled in Naomi Campbell's Fashion for Relief fundraiser, in aid of White Ribbon Alliance[108] – Haiti, at Somerset House on the Strand, London, on 18 February 2010.[109][110][111][94]

Neilson was involved with the South Africa-based Nelson Mandela Children's Fund.[112] She had been introduced to the charity by Campbell.[113]

Neilson participated in Goodwood Racecourse's all-women's horse race at Ascot Gold Cup on 13 August 2013, in aid of Water, which sponsored a school in Ethiopia. In preparation for the event, she trained at Newmarket Racecourse. Alexander McQueen designed a dress shirt with a skull on both sides for her to wear.[4][114][115][86]

Neilson walked in Campbell's Fashion for Relief fundraiser, in aid of Disasters Emergency Committee – Ebola, at Somerset House on the Strand on 19 February 2015.[116][117][118][94][119]

Neilson wrote a section of the children's book The Curious Tale of Fi-Rex! (ISBN 978-1910884003), in aid of Children in Need 2015, with other celebrities. The novel focused on a half-girl, half-dragon called Fi-rex, who meets characters and creatures of every type on her quest to find the right way home.[120][121][122][100][123]

Personal life

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Neilson said "I'd prefer to be infamous rather than famous".[124][125][126]

Neilson and her partner, British-born Canadian financier Nathaniel Rothschild, eloped to Las Vegas, Nevada, on 13 November 1995. The couple had been in a relationship since 1991.[127][128][129] They first met on a beach in Bali, Indonesia.[130][131] While attending formal gatherings during their marriage, she was commonly addressed by the courtesy title The Honourable Mrs. Rothschild. The couple legally separated, at her request, in 1997, after less than two years of marriage, and their divorce was finalised in 1998, after less than three years of marriage.[b][53][132] She received a substantial out-of-court settlement after signing a confidentiality agreement[133] and agreeing to revert to her maiden name.[134] She later told the Daily Mail: "Nat and I had been together for four years and I was 26 when I married him. He first asked me to marry him half an hour after we met and then every day afterwards. Finally, we decided to do it."[32] In 2007, she told Tatler: "You don't fall in love with a title. You fall in love with a person. And that's all I'm saying. I've never talked about Nat and he's never talked about me. We made an agreement and we've stuck to it. I don't intend to break that promise now."[28] While caught off guard by a journalist from the Daily Mail on 25 October 2008, her mother, Elizabeth, broke ranks to describe her daughter's ex-husband as "a very naughty boy", while remembering the "crazy" life her daughter was sucked into.[135] In 2014, her ex-husband said: "I find it bizarre that I'm still linked with someone I was involved with literally 20 years ago.[136]

Following her divorce, Neilson dated Lord Edward Spencer-Churchill, a British management consultant from the Spencer-Churchill family. Their relationship, which went on to be an on-again, off-again relationship, started in 2002. They remained close friends following their split in 2009.[137][138] She attended Spencer-Churchill's civil ceremony to the German photographer Kimberly "Kimi" Hammerstroem at Mayfair Library on 4 July 2018,[139] followed by their religious ceremony at Blenheim Palace on 7 July 2018,[140][141][142] her final public appearance in high society.[143][144]

Neilson was a member of the Primrose Hill set during the 1990s.[145][146][147] She remained sober from her thirties after attending Narcotics Anonymous meetings,[148] however, she continued to smoke cigarettes. She occasionally drank alcohol, but preferred a cup of tea or coffee.[5] She became well known as a socialite[149][150][151] and had been described as an "it" girl.[152][153] She was often spotted at the clothing trade show, London Fashion Week.[154]

Neilson had an close friendship with the fashion designer Alexander McQueen,[155][156] having been introduced to each other by the magazine editor Isabella Blow.[157][158][159][160] She was born exactly two weeks after him. He called her Tinkerbell,[161] she called him Lee.[162] The pair considered each other to be confidants.[163] McQueen's fashion house, Alexander McQueen, dedicated their autumn/winter 1998 show, Joan, to her.[164] In 2000,[165] she was a bridesmaid at his unofficial Ibiza marriage ceremony to the documentary filmmaker George Forsyth.[166] She had a bedroom in every home he owned.[167] They shared custody of a dog called Juice. She was the last person to see McQueen alive, having left his Green Street, Mayfair,[135] home at 3:00 a.m. on 11 February 2010,[168] the day of his suicide.[169][170] She attended his funeral service, which was held at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, on 25 February 2010, where she read lines from the Edgar Allan Poe poem Annabel Lee.[171][172][173] Throughout March 2010, she paid visual tribute to McQueen by wearing his distinctive 'manta' dress.[174] She organised and spoke at his memorial service, which was held at St Paul's Cathedral on 20 September 2010.[175][176][177] She acted more reserved after his death.[178][179] She later told the Daily Mail:[4] "He was my brother, my boyfriend, my soulmate. Most of the time people called me Mrs. McQueen. Quite often we were sharing a bed. The truth is I was happier with Lee than with anyone else. He asked me to marry him towards the end and I said no. I wish now that I had said yes."[180] After McQueen's death, she would only wear her Sarah Burton-designed Alexander McQueen clothing in public, preferring to keep her McQueen-designed couture in her personal archive.[181]

Neilson and Kate Moss were best friends.[182][183][184][185] She was romantically involved with Jefferson Hack—the father of the model Lila Moss (born Lila Grace Moss Hack)—following Moss and Hack's split. She was Lila's godmother. She had also been romantically linked to Will Ricker, and Karta Healy, the heir to Kettle Crisps.[28] Naomi Campbell was a close friend.[186][94][187][188] She often spent all-nighters at Supernova Heights in Belsize Park, with some of her closest friends, including Sadie Frost,[189] Jude Law,[190] Liam Gallagher,[191] Noel Gallagher,[192] Rhys Ifans,[193] Patsy Kensit,[194] Sienna Miller,[195] and Davinia Taylor.[196]

Neilson was a close family friend to the House of Montagu.[5] John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich,[197] and his wife, Caroline Montagu, Countess of Sandwich looked after her when she was a young girl.[198] She would stay at Mapperton House[199] during the shooting season.[200] She was particularly close with Luke Montagu, Viscount Hinchingbrooke,[e][201] and his brother, The Hon. Orlando William Montagu, having met them during her 20s. She later became friends with Viscount Hinchingbrooke's wife, Julie Montagu, Viscountess Hinchingbrooke,[f][89][202] whom she affectionately called Jules.[203][204]

Neilson once said that her closest Bravolebrity was the Dulwich-born Lisa Vanderpump from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Vanderpump Rules.[205] Her appearance was often compared to that of Cindy Barshop from The Real Housewives of New York City.[206]

Neilson was among the intimate crowd of Leona Lewis' acoustic gig at Annabel's in Mayfair on 11 September 2012. The set-list included songs from Lewis' third studio album Glassheart. The audience also included Lewis' parents, as well as Kelly Brook and Arun Nayar.[citation needed]

Neilson was an horse racer until 2013, when she was thrown off the saddle at 45 mph, breaking her pelvis. Four ambulances and a helicopter ambulance attended the scene. She was told by doctors that she could never ride again, but regained her ability to walk after twelve weeks.[114][207]

Neilson enjoyed flying helicopters and swimming with sharks. On separate occasions, she once competed in a rally across the Himalayas during the winter and once rode a motorbike across Australia.[53] As an adult, her favourite books were Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T. E. Lawrence and anything written by Isaac Asimov.[25]

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Death

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Neilson was found dead at her home in Chelsea, London, on the evening of 12 July 2018. She was 49.[208][209][210][211] The London Metropolitan Police said in a statement: "Police were called by the London Ambulance Service at approximately 22:20 hours on Thursday, 12 July, to a residential address ... after a woman had been found deceased at the location. The death is not being treated as suspicious by police."[212][213][214] Her death was announced to the public four days later, on 16 July.[215][216] Susan Lord, a spokesperson for Westminster Coroner's Court revealed her cause of death to be a "cerebrovascular accident", or a stroke.[217][218][219] Her family said her cause of death was a heart attack.[220][221][222]

On 14 July 2018, two days after her death, a picture of a man in a swimming pool was shared to Neilson's official Instagram account, @annabelleneilson1,[d][223] with the caption: "Fatties get in first!". The posthumous post led her close friends to believe the rumours of her death had been a hoax. Later that same day, a family member cleared her Instagram feed of negative-seeming photographs and captions.[224][225]

On 17 July, Neilson's sister, Millie, released a statement on behalf of her family:[226]

Very sadly, we have been informed today that my sister Annabelle, died as a result of a heart attack at home last Thursday. It has come as a complete shock, as she had many plans having recently returned from Spain. My parents and I are devastated and shocked by this news. We would ask the media to respect the privacy of our family and Annabelle's close friends during this very difficult time. We will not be making any further statement at this time. We thank you for your consideration.[227]

Tributes and reactions

The fashion house, Alexander McQueen, paid tribute with lines from the Edgar Allan Poe poem Annabel Lee.[228] The Kate Moss Agency paid tribute to Neilson with a broken heart emoji: "💔".[229][230]

Bravo shared in a statement to The Daily Dish: "We at Bravo are saddened to hear about the passing of Annabelle Neilson who was a dearly loved and respected cast member on two seasons of Ladies of London. We send our deepest sympathies to her family and friends during this very difficult time."[231] On 18 July, Andy Cohen opened that night's episode of the Bravo pop culture-based late-night talk show Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen by saying: "I want to get started with some sad news. We found out that Annabelle from Ladies of London passed away. We just found out today. Don't have a lot of details; we just want to send our love to her family. She was unique and spirited and really wonderful to watch and to know. We're torn up about it here."[232]

Neilson died on her former husband's 47th birthday,[233][234] leading to numerous conspiracy theories,[235][236][237] including conspiracy theories relating to the Rothschild banking family of England.[238]

Neilson's death was likened to the deaths of Isabella Blow,[239][240][241] Alexander McQueen[242][243][244] and Tara Palmer-Tomkinson.[245][246][247]

Funeral

Neilson was laid to rest following her private funeral service at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, on 27 July 2018.[248][249][250][251] Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell gave a joint eulogy during the service. Meg Mathews, Orlando Bloom, Liv Tyler and Tyler's then-partner, Dave Gardner, were among the mourners.[252][253][254]

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Legacy

Neilson's archive of Alexander McQueen couture,[255][256] that she had personally received from the fashion designer himself,[257] were auctioned by Kerry Taylor Auctions in London on 22 September 2020. The auction, titled "The Annabelle Neilson Collection of Alexander McQueen Auction", was estimated to raise between £120,000 and £180,000.[258][259] Kerry Taylor spoke to her sister about the auction, on 8 September.[260] The event was originally scheduled to take place on 30 March, the day before, what would have been, her 51st birthday, however, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was postponed on 17 March, thirteen days prior to the originally scheduled date.[261][262]

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Titles and styles

  • 31 March 1969 – 13 November 1995: Miss Iona Annabelle Neilson
  • 13 November 1995 – 1998:[b] The Honourable Mrs. Iona Annabelle Rothschild
  • 1998 – 12 July 2018: Ms. Iona Annabelle Neilson

Bibliography

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Filmography

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Notes

  1. Rothschild only succeeded as the 5th Baron Rothschild on the death of his father, on 26 February 2024.
  2. Most sources incorrectly report the Rothschild–Neilson marriage to have been between 1994 and 1997.
  3. English: Marchioness.
  4. Neilson's official Instagram account was hacked in 2019, by someone in Saudi Arabia.
  5. Viscount Hinchingbrooke only succeeded as the 12th Earl of Sandwich on the death of his father on 1 February 2025.
  6. Viscountess Hinchingbrooke only succeeded as the Countess of Sandwich on the death of her father-in-law on 1 February 2025.
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References

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