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Richard Branson

18 July 1950 – present

Richard Branson is a British businessman, born in London in 1950, who founded the Virgin Group. He began with the magazine Student and a mail-order record business before launching Virgin Records in 1972 and the airline Virgin Atlantic in 1984. He later founded the spaceflight company Virgin Galactic and flew on one of its test flights in 2021.

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Life events

Born in Blackheath, London
18 July 1950

Richard Charles Nicholas Branson was born in south-east London.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Birth ✓
Launched the magazine Student
1968

Branson started the publication while still at school.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Opened the first Virgin record shop on Oxford Street
1971

The shop followed a mail-order record business trading under the Virgin name.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Founded the Virgin Records label
1972

The label's first release was Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells in 1973.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Founded Virgin Atlantic Airways
1984

The transatlantic airline began flying between London and Newark.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Married Joan Templeman
1989

The couple have two children, Holly and Sam.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Relationship ✓
Sold Virgin Records to Thorn EMI
1992

The sale funded the expansion of Virgin Atlantic.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Founded Virgin Galactic
2004

The company was set up to develop commercial suborbital spaceflight.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Flew to the edge of space aboard VSS Unity
11 July 2021

Branson took part in a Virgin Galactic test flight from Spaceport America in New Mexico.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓