Sir Richard Branson’s daughter told a pre-inquest review the family wanted “to help other families if there are any lessons to be learned” after Lady Joan Sarah Drummond Branson died in November last year
14:00, 06 May 2026Updated 15:23, 06 May 2026
Sir Richard Branson’s wife Lady Joan Sarah Drummond Branson, 80, died on November 24 at London Bridge Hospital(Image: WireImage)
Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson’s wife Joan’s from cause of death has been revealed in the wake of the tragedy that hit the family at the end of last year.
Lady Joan Sarah Drummond Branson, 80, died from a blood clot on November 24 last year at London Bridge Hospital from complications following a fall-induced back injury two weeks earlier. At a pre-inquest review hearing Sir Richard and Joan’s daughter Holly, 44, said the family was not looking to blame anyone for her death.
But an inquest to be held later this year will look at whether Lady Branson should have been prescribed blood thinners and if she was wearing anti-clot stockings at the time of her death. Speaking at the hearing at Inner West London Coroners’ Court, Holly said: “I believe mum had great care. The doctors saved her life three years ago, giving us all three more years together. We just want to help other families if there are any lessons to be learned.”
Lady Joan’s daughter Holly, pictured with sibling Sam and father Sir Richard, said: “We just want to help other families.”(Image: Getty Images)
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Senior Coroner Professor Fiona Wilcox told the court the upcoming inquest would establish whether or not Lady Branson was wearing Thrombo-Embolus Deterrent – or TED – stockings, which reduce the risk of blood clots and are worn by patients during periods of inactivity.
Prof Wilcox told the court that statements from an expert witness would be needed to determine whether a prescription of the anti-coagulant Heparin “would have prevented Lady Branson’s death”, given that she had a previous history of clots.
An expert haematologist will present a report of their findings at the inquest, scheduled for September. Joan’s history of blood clots went back to at least 2010. In 2018, Sir Richard shared that one morning around eight years previously Joan had woken up to find her leg three times its normal size – which led to her undergoing a novel new treatment.
After Lady Joan’s death, Sir Richard wrote a heart-wrenching tribute describing her as “my best friend, my rock, my guiding light, my world”(Image: Branson Family/Virgin)
She had suffered a series of clots from her ankle up to her groin – the “worst case” doctors at that hospital had ever seen. Sir Richard said: “She was in great danger of a pulmonary embolism, as bits of the clot threatened to break away and travel to her lungs. The doctors put her on a drug called Warfarin, pulled a compression stocking over her leg and told her that over a number of years the leg would gradually improve, but that at any stage she might suffer a major pulmonary embolism that could kill her.”
But she underwent surgery that put a tiny umbrella inside her leg so that if any clot did break off, it could not enter her lungs. “Two days later, she nearly skipped out of the building!” he added. Sir Richard was in the same hospital as his wife when she died as he had hurt his shoulder falling off a bike in India.
He broke the news of his wife’s passing on Instagram on November 25 last year. He said: “Heartbroken to share that Joan, my wife and partner for 50 years, has passed away. She was the most wonderful mum and grandmum our kids and grandkids could have ever wished for. She was my best friend, my rock, my guiding light, my world. Love you forever, Joan x”
A day later, on virgin.com, he wrote a longer tribute. He said: “Joan was the most wonderful partner, friend, mum and grandmother we could ever have wished for. Holly, Sam and I are all together now, doing our best to smile through the tears and to focus on all the good things she brought into our world. There are so many.
“We had a lovely lunch that day. She was in positive spirits and getting stronger. She smiled at me, that radiant smile that lit up her whole face, the same smile I fell in love with the very first moment I saw her, half a century ago. Then suddenly, she was gone, quickly and painlessly. And thankfully, I was right by her side. It brings us all great comfort to know we were together.”
Sir Richard and Joan’s love story began in 1976, when the fledgling tycoon met the then Joan Templeman at The Manor, the live-in recording studio he had built for Virgin Records. She worked in an antiques shop called Dodo in Notting Hill, close to the Virgin office.
Glasgow-born Joan was a former model, at the heart of Swinging London’s vibrant music and fashion scene. Sir Richard found excuses to visit her shop, amassing a huge collection of antiques he didn’t really need.
At the time, Joan was still married to her first husband, rock pianist Ronnie Leahy, and the pair embarked on an affair. Joan took a while to warm to the charm offensive, but Sir Richard’s persistence – lavish gifts, impromptu trips, even halting a taxiing plane at Heathrow to whisk her aboard – wore down her reservations.
Tragedy struck when Sir Richard and Joan’s first child, Clare Sarah, was still-born in 1979. Joan would go on to support premature birth-charities as part of her philanthropic work later in life. The couple’s children Holly and Sam were born in 1981 and 1985. Joan’s five grandchildren also survive her.
