March 2013
Sam and I with some of our Guinness World Records (I have seven and counting!)
March 2013
Leading the way uphill at the Cape Argus Cycle Race in South Africa
May 2013
Coffee, tea or me? Serving Tony Fernandes while working as Air Asia cabin crew after losing a bet
Circa 2013
Looking out at the Great Migration from Mahali Mzuri, Kenya
September 2013
Breaking the Taboo with the Global Commission on Drug Policy in Geneva, Switzerland. Left to right: me, Kofi Annan, Ernesto Zedillo, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, César Gaviria, Ruth Dreifuss, Michel Kazatchkine, Jorge Sampaio, Thorvald Stoltenberg
November 2013
Freddie, Holly, Sam and Bellie pushing me into the pool at the Temple on Necker Island
November 2013
Welcome to our home
November 2013
The closest siblings any parents could wish for, Sam and Holly all smiles on Necker
Circa 2013
I love relaxing at the Lodge, our stunning ski resort in Verbier, Switzerland.
Circa 2013
The Roof Gardens in London, scene of some of the best Virgin parties
Circa 2013
Rock lodge at Ulusaba, our incredible safari hideaway in South Africa
November 2013
Rafa Nadal and I celebrating our win over Jimmy Buffett and Mike Bryan at the Necker Cup
December 2013
Launching a new Virgin Active health club in Madrid
2014
One of my twenty cups of tea per day, looking out to sea on Necker
January 2014
Fun, fast filming with Usain Bolt in Jamaica
February 2014
Floating on a zero-gravity flight with some of the Virgin Galactic family
March 2014
Meeting the inspirational Malala
May 2014
Kisses for Love Field after winning Virgin America’s battle for slots
May 2014
Another tie bites the dust!
June 2014
Sharing a joke at Virgin HQ in London with our chairman—and Holly’s mentor—Peter Norris
July 2014
Happy 90th birthday, Mum! Celebrating with the family on Necker Island
Circa 2014
Over the moon with SpaceShipTwo’s supersonic test flight
2014
Space is Virgin territory: WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo on a test flight above Mojave skies
August 2014
Getting animated on The Simpsons
September 2014
Selfie time with Virgin Atlantic
Sam retching on top of the Matterhorn, before I watched a helicopter rescue him. Left to right: Stephen Shanly, Sam, my nephew Noah
September 2014
Sam and Noah on top of the Matterhorn—just before Sam was rescued from the peak by helicopter
October 2014
Pete Siebold lifts his right fist to signal he is alive after being thrown out of SpaceShipTwo in midair. He was one of the first people in history to walk away from a supersonic accident.
October 2014
SpaceShipTwo’s test flight accident
October 2014
Whole team hug after SpaceShipTwo’s test flight accident
2014
With the B Team in New York in 2014
January 2015
Proud grand-dude! Joan and I babysitting newborn grandkids Etta, Artie and Eva-Deia
January 2015
Call yourself a sailor? Celebrating rescuing Sir Ben Ainslie and his wife, Georgie, on Necker Island
April 2015
Richard Branson’s Day Off! Launching Virgin Hotels with a street parade in Chicago
April 2015
Reading a bedtime story—Where the Wild Things Are—to Virgin Hotels Chicago guests
July 2015
My adorable grandchildren Etta and Artie with their mum and dad on my 65th birthday on Necker
July 2015
Celebrating Joan’s 70th in Oxford with the family
July 2015
Giving Joan a birthday kiss as our kids look on
July 2015
With my sisters Vanessa and Lindi and our mum on my 65th birthday
August 2015
Astronaut Mark Kelly’s photo of Necker from the International Space Station
September 2015
In my happy place, kitesurfing in the British Virgin Islands
October 2015
Magical moment in South Africa helping a young girl hear for the first time
October 2015
Sharing ideas with Virgin CEO Josh Bayliss in Sydney
October 2015
The UNODC paper calling for global drug decriminalization. When the UN wouldn’t release the document, I leaked it.
January 2016
Discovering I’m part Indian while researching my family tree on Finding My Roots
January 2016
Talking leadership with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Davos
February 2016
Moments before I was kissed by a stingray in the Cayman Islands
February 2016
The Virgin Galactic team in Mojave celebrating the rollout of VSS Unity, our new spaceship
February 2016
Unveiling VSS Unity, the new spaceship built by The Spaceship Company and Virgin Galactic
March 2016
Skiing in Verbier with the family
Celebrating the first 1,000 loans handed out by Virgin StartUp to entrepreneurs in the UK
2016
Virgin eRacing team—electric cars are the future of motorsport.
2016
My darling Joan. Some people are just meant to be together.
June 2016
Going viral after surprising a sleeping Virgin Australia team member
July 2016
Talking to David Cameron on the day he announced he was stepping down as Prime Minister
August 2016
Great honor sharing lunch with President Obama at the White House
August 2016
Amazed I’m still alive after my bike fell off a cliff in the British Virgin Islands
August 2016
Drinking tea through a straw after my near-death cycling accident
September 2016
Climbing Mount Etna at the end of the grueling Virgin Strive Challenge
September 2016
Climbing to the summit of Mount Etna with Holly and Sam on the Virgin Strive Challenge
September 2016
Tearful hug with Holly and Sam after completing the Virgin Strive Challenge
September 2016
If you want to go far, go together—cycling on the Virgin Strive Challenge
October 2016
With Bill Gates discussing philanthropy and clean energy in London
April 2017
Necker, the breathtaking island I bought in 1979. The BVI is now our home.
December 2016
VSS Unity’s first test flight—I was watching from below.
2017
The thrilling moment when VSS Unity is released from WhiteKnightTwo and flies freely toward space
January 2017
Necker tennis tournament with the Obamas and friends
January 2017
Friendly competition with President Obama out on the water off Necker
January 2017
Foilbo
arding contest against President Obama on Necker
February 2017
My view when I look up to the stars on Necker Island
March 2017
Working on Necker with Holly
March 2017
Introducing Etta and Artie to Necker Island’s flamingos
March 2017
Never too young to learn the art of chess
April 2017
Diving the Kodiak Queen, a WWII ship we sank in the BVI to create a conservation reef and dive site
April 2017
Marching in Washington with 200,000 people to call for ambitious action against climate change
April 2017
Eat your heart out, Usain Bolt! Fun at the first Virgin Sport Hackney Festival of Fitness
2017
The people who mean the most in the world to me
May 2017
How Virgin Orbit’s adapted Cosmic Girl will look, with LauncherOne on the wing
May 2017
Making Ship Happen at the Virgin Voyages launch in Miami
May 2017
The Virgin Orbit team in front of one of our LauncherOne rockets in Long Beach
June 2017
A special hug with my son, Sam, and my newborn grandson, Bluey
2017
All smiles with my first three grandchildren
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would need another book to properly thank the tens of thousands of wonderful people who make Virgin what it is today. But a special mention to Nick Fox and the Virgin management team, Ed Faulkner, Lucy Oates and the Virgin Books teams for their guidance on this project. Thanks to Helen Clarke for her assistance, and of course Joan and my family for their love and support. An extra special thank you to every person who has ever been and will always be a part of the Virgin family.
APPENDIX
Seventy-five Close Shaves
“You must have had a near miss for every year you’ve been alive,” said Helen after my cycling accident. “I think it’s probably more than that—there’s been four this year alone. I’ll try to remember them all.” I went back to my bedroom at about 11 p.m. and began noting down all the close shaves I could think of. By morning, I had come up with this list (I’m sure I’ve missed some!):
1953—Aged three, tobogganing on a tray down an icy hill. I ended up falling off and going on my face instead. Mum says it’s why I look like I do!
1954—There was petrol rationing after the war. Naughtily, my parents were storing petrol in the kitchen of the house, which one day caught fire. My sister Lindi and I had to be hurried out of the house while the fire brigade put out the blaze.
1955—Jumped into a fast-flowing river in New Milton, Devon, to win a bet that I could learn to swim by the end of the holiday. I survived and earned the ten shillings prize from my Auntie Joyce.
1956—Playing dare with my best friend Nik Powell, we were seeing who could ride his bike closest to a river. I got the closest and ended up in the river! I managed to get myself out, but lost his bike—Mum and Dad had to save to buy him a new one.
1957—Climbing up a steep cliff in Devon on holiday, I was showing off to my friends and got stuck halfway up it. I couldn’t go up or down and had to be rescued.
1958—My first time horse jumping, I fell onto a jump midair and broke some ribs. I’ve still got the broken rib on my left side sticking out to show from it.
1960—Playing football at school, I ripped my knee cartilage—that was the end of any professional sporting aspirations.
1968—Came off a motorbike in Bali while holidaying as a teenager. I was left badly cut up.
1972—Survived a fishing boat sinking on honeymoon with my first wife, Kristen, off Mexico. We decided to jump off the boat and swim for shore, while the rest of the passengers stayed put—we were the only survivors.
1973—My houseboat in London, Duende, sank. I pumped out water and when the pump was turned off it siphoned all the water back in.
1974—Went for a walk with Kristen and my dog Friday in London. We were just going past St. Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, when a body came flying through the air and exploded on the railings right in front of us. It was somebody committing suicide, who had jumped out of a hospital window.
1975—Hit by lightning in a plane. This has now happened three times over the years.
1976—Flew a microlight aircraft by mistake. It was the first time I’d sat in it, I had no idea how to fly it and accidentally took off. I was pulling wires out desperately. I cut the engine and managed to crash-land into a field. My instructor died in an accident the next day.
1977—We used to have weekends away with Virgin staff, which once got a little out of control. We were out on the water and two of us ran our Jet Skis into each other. Thankfully there were no broken bones, but the Jet Skis were write-offs.
1979—At 2 a.m., decided to sail around Necker Island with my friend Steve Barron. We got lost in the pitch black, huge waves rolled in and we crashed onto the coral. Thankfully the moon came out and we made it back to the island in just about one piece.
1980—I stubbed my toe while walking around Necker Island and suddenly fell down a gaping gorge. I managed to get my hand to the other side, and Steve Barron managed to rescue me, pulling me up before I fell to what would have been certain death on the jagged rocks below.
1981—My party trick at staff parties was to walk across the top of marquees, and pretend to slip and grab the top of the tent. Once I missed grabbing it and went shooting all the way to the ground. Luckily I only suffered cuts and bruises.
1983—Beaten up by three burglars in my home in Albion Street. Managing to escape, I ran naked to Virgin’s offices.
1984—The engine exploded on the first Virgin Atlantic test flight, with a jet of flame 100 feet long going past my face as I sat in a window seat on board. The Civil Aviation Inspector was on the flight, too, on the day before our inaugural. Some birds had flown into the engine. I wasn’t sure whether to be terrified of losing my life or terrified of losing my license.
1985—Got caught in a strong storm off the Isle of Wight while on the Virgin Atlantic Challenger 1. The engineer on board broke his leg.
1985—Sank in the Virgin Atlantic Challenger 1 as we were crossing the Atlantic, had to be pulled out of the ocean.
1986—Crashed a hire car while driving through the Alps to Zermatt with my family. I hit some ice and went down a small cliff and turned the car over. I also crashed another car in Switzerland while driving alone on another occasion.
1986—On my first solo hot-air balloon flight I crashed badly, smashing into the ground. It was a sign of things to come!
1986—On another early balloon flight, I went flying over Oxford with Mike Oldfield, and soon found there was no safe place to land. After almost crashing onto some railings in a park, I managed to land the balloon on the roof of a bakery.
1986—On my first time skydiving, there was one cord that opened the parachute, and one that got rid of it. I pulled the wrong cord by mistake. I was falling through the air before an instructor managed to yank my spare ripcord.
1987—On our attempt to cross the Atlantic in a hot-air balloon, the balloon’s solar heating was too good and we headed up, up and up with seemingly no way to stop it. My co-pilot Per managed to bring the balloon down just before the capsule imploded and we tumbled to our deaths.
1987—On the same flight, we crash-landed in Northern Ireland in the hot-air balloon—officially breaking a Guinness World Record in the process.
1987—On the same challenge, I lost my co-pilot when Per jumped into the Atlantic, leaving me alone in the hot-air balloon as it disappeared back above the clouds. I was convinced I was going to die.
1987—On that memorable flight’s fourth brush with disaster, I
managed to crash the balloon into the North Sea, and was rescued by helicopter.