Richard Branson’s mom left $4.5 million estate

By Tom Bevan via SWNS

The mother of Virgin founder and billionaire Richard Branson left behind an estate worth $4.5 million (£3.7m).

Probate documents for Evette Huntley Branson showed her full estate being valued at £3,731,160 - although the net value amounted to just £87,387.

Her will, produced in July 2016, revealed executors were her daughter Vanessa Branson and Peter Norris - with Richard, listed as being of Necker Island, named as a reserve.

Evette, who died at age 96 from COVID-19 complications on 8 January 2021, lived in Cakeham Manor in West Wittering, UK. Paying tribute at the time Richard said Virgin would never have been set up without her.

The will of the mother-of-three included an instruction to be cremated and a bench to be built at West Wittering overlooking the sea in commemoration of her life.

She also donated a property called "The Craft House" in Morocco to her daughter Vanessa together with all contents that don't form part of the Eve Branson Foundation.

She also asked for Vanessa or her granddaughter Florence to carry on her work with the foundation.

Vanessa was also gifted a mooring in the South of France which is adjacent to the house she owns.

Her grandson Ned Rocknroll was given her beach hut, number 156, at West Wittering.

Virgin boss Richard and his wife Joan Branson were gifted all furniture and pictures situated at the property 92 Rivermead Court in London while he was also given her shareholdings in Cakeham Manor Estate and Webbs Land.

Grandson Noah Devereux, was gifted her Bayliner boat which is moored in France while daughter Vanessa was given the fishing boat 'Saki' moored in Chichester.

All profits and other rights from her autobiography 'Mums the Word' and her book 'Sarkey Puddleboat' were gifted to Holly Peppe.

Her other diaries and writings were donated to Vanessa along with all copyright profits and any other rights and privileges which may exist.

All her Spanish properties were given to daughter Lynette Branson while her two secretaries Amy Newton and Aimi Gardner were gifted £1,000 each. The latter was given on the condition she "finalizes the organization of any Polo match to be held in Morocco that was in the process of being arranged at the date of my death."

Each of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren were also awarded £1,000.

Evette, who was widowed in 2011, was described by Richard Branson at the time of her death as a “force of nature” who “lived many remarkable lives."

This included enlisting in the women’s branch of the Royal Navy in World War II, touring Germany as a ballet dancer, and working as a flight attendant.

Richard also said he owed his career to his mother, recalling a day in the late 1960s when his mother saw a necklace lying on the road and took it to the police station.

When no one had claimed it after three months, police told his mother she could keep it.

He added: "She came up to London, sold the necklace and gave me the money.

"Without that £100, I could never have started Virgin."

He also praised his mother for founding the Eve Branson Foundation, which teaches skills to young people in Morocco to preserve traditional craft-making skills and improve local communities.

In 2013 she published her autobiography, Mum's the Word: The High-Flying Adventures of Eve Branson.