Annabelle Neilson
Iona Annabelle Neilson was a British socialite, fashion model, author, and television personality. She first gained media attention as the muse of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen, but received wider notice after she began to appear as an original main cast member on the Bravo reality television series Ladies of London.
Neilson was, briefly, the first wife of Nathaniel Rothschild, 5th Baron Rothschild, from the Rothschild banking family of England. During their marriage, her courtesy title was The Honourable Mrs. Rothschild.
Early life and education
Iona Annabelle Neilson was born into a wealthy, aristocratic family at King's College Hospital in London, England, on 31 March 1969, as the middle child and younger daughter to Maxwell Frederick Neilson, an investment and property advisor, and his wife, Marchesa Elizabetta. She had an elder sister.Neilson split her time between her family's SW3 home, 19 Tedworth Square in Chelsea, London, and her family's country estate, Chiltern House in the Chiltern Hills, near Oxfordshire.
Education
Neilson attended at Lady Eden's School on Victoria Road, Kensington, where she was held back a year. At the age of 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. Her school friends included Francesca Amfitheatrof. She finished her education with no qualifications at sixteen.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. She fell into a deep depression and became a heroin addict; she was sober by the end of her twenties. She had been travelling in Australia with her paternal cousin, Guy Greville, 9th Earl of Warwick, who owned a fruit-bottling company there. She later said her addiction saved her "because otherwise I would have killed myself,". Her attacker was later convicted of killing three women.Career
Neilson launched her professional career as a fashion model during her early twenties. She became the muse of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen at 22, and continued so until his death in 2010. She was also the muse of John Galliano. She walked in fashion shows for McQueen and Galliano throughout the 1990s and early 2000s.Neilson made an unsuccessful attempt at becoming an actress in 2000, after taking several screen tests. 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.
Neilson appeared twice in the 2000 VOGUE portfolio, How Many People Does It Take to Make a Dress?, where she depicted designers and their support groups.
Neilson was signed to the Sarah Doukas-founded modelling agency Storm Management in 2007.
Neilson posed for Lee Jenkins wearing Sarabande
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'.
Neilson was the creator and writer of the PBS SoCAL arts and culture documentary series Voces on PBS. The series explored the diversity of the Latino cultural experience and was produced by Latino Public Broadcasting.
Neilson rose to prominence as an original main cast member on the Bravo reality television series Ladies of London. The series chronicled the personal and professional lives of six women who lived in London, as they balanced their social lives, businesses and families. The first series premiered on 2 June 2014, with Juliet Angus, Caprice Bourret, Marissa Hermer, Noelle Reno, and Caroline Stanbury, while Luke Henderson served as a recurring cast member. The debut episode attracted 1.17 million viewers. She quickly became a fan favourite. She published blogs on BravoTV.com weekly. The finale episode was aired on 21 July 2014. In March 2015, the network renewed the show for a second series. She returned to the main cast. The second series premiered on 7 September 2015, with two new cast members, Caroline Fleming and Julie Montagu, Viscountess Hinchingbrooke. The finale episode aired on 9 November 2015. In December 2015, she announced her departure from the show in a post to her official Instagram account. She appeared in nineteen episodes.
Neilson mentored the fashion designer Conchita Pérez for Pérez's fashion show, which took place in East London. She often modelled at the London Fashion Week clothing trade show.
Neilson was the author of the Me Me Me children's and teenage, and picture book series. The first instalment, Angry Me, was published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 18 August 2015. The second and third instalments, Messy Me and Dreamy Me, were both published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 19 January 2016. 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.
Neilson wrote an autobiography, McQueen and I, which was published by Virgin Books on 14 February 2016. The book focused on her life with Alexander McQueen.
Neilson made her final on-screen appearance in a cameo role during the biographical documentary film McQueen. Archived footage was also used. The documentary focused on the life and career of Alexander McQueen, and was released during the 2018 Tribeca Festival, on 22 April.
Charity work
Neilson modelled in Naomi Campbell's Fashion for Relief fundraiser, in aid of White Ribbon Alliance – Haiti, at Somerset House on the Strand, London, on 18 February 2010.Neilson was involved with the South Africa-based Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. She had been introduced to the charity by Campbell.
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.
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.
Neilson wrote a section of the children's book The Curious Tale of Fi-Rex!, 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.
Personal life
Marriage
Neilson and her partner, British-born Canadian financier Nathaniel Rothschild, 5th Baron Rothschild, from the Rothschild banking family of England, eloped to Las Vegas, Nevada, on 13 November 1995, following a four-year relationship. The couple first met on a beach in Bali, Indonesia. During their marriage, her courtesy title was The Honourable Mrs. Rothschild.They legally separated at Neilson's request in 1997. Their divorce was finalised in 1998, after less than two years of marriage. She received a substantial out-of-court settlement after signing a confidentiality agreement and agreeing to revert to her maiden name, having been legally known as Iona Annabelle Rothschild. 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." Caught off guard by a journalist from the Daily Mail on 25 October 2008, her mother broke ranks to describe her daughter's ex-husband as "a very naughty boy", while remembering the "crazy" life her daughter was sucked into. In 2014, her ex-husband told the Evening Standard: "I find it bizarre that I'm still linked with someone I was involved with literally 20 years ago."
Relationship with Alexander McQueen
Neilson had a close friendship with the fashion designer Alexander McQueen, The pair considered each other confidants; he called her Tinkerbell, she called him Lee, and she had a bedroom in every home he owned. McQueen's fashion house, Alexander McQueen, dedicated their autumn/winter 1998 show, Joan, to her. In 2000, she was a bridesmaid at McQueen's unofficial Ibiza marriage ceremony to the documentary filmmaker George Forsyth.Neilson was the last person to see McQueen alive, having left his Green Street, Mayfair home at 3:00 a.m. on 11 February 2010, the day of his suicide. 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. Throughout March 2010, she paid tribute to McQueen by wearing his distinctive "manta" dress. She organised and spoke at his memorial service, held at St Paul's Cathedral on 20 September 2010. She acted more reserved after McQueen's death.
Other relationships
Neilson dated the management consultant Lord Edward Spencer-Churchill, from the Spencer-Churchill family. Their on-again, off-again relationship started in 2002, and they remained close friends following their 2009 split. She attended Spencer-Churchill's civil ceremony to the German photographer Kimberly 'Kimi' Hammerstroem at the Mayfair Library on 4 July 2018, followed by their religious ceremony at Blenheim Palace on 7 July 2018, her final public appearance in high society.Neilson and Kate Moss were best friends. She was romantically involved with Jefferson Hack—the father of the model Lila Moss —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. Naomi Campbell was a close friend.
Neilson was a close family friend of members of the House of Montagu. John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich, and his wife, Caroline Montagu, Countess of Sandwich looked after her when she was a young girl. She would stay at Mapperton House during the shooting season. She was particularly close with Luke Montagu, Viscount Hinchingbrooke, and his brother, Orlando William Montagu, having met them during her 20s. She later became friends with Viscount Hinchingbrooke's wife, Julie Montagu.