Marina Wheeler

Marina Wheeler, QC (born 1964 in Berlin) is a British lawyer, author and columnist. As a barrister, she specialises in public law, including human rights, and is a member of the Bar Disciplinary Tribunal. She was appointed Queen's Counsel in 2016.[1]

She is married to the politician Boris Johnson; however, during 2018 the couple separated and began the process of divorce.

Early life

Marina Claire Wheeler was born to BBC correspondent Sir Charles Wheeler and his second wife, Indian Sikh Dip Singh; her ancestry goes back to the town of Sargodha in West Punjab, modern-day Pakistan, with her maternal family migrating to India after the Partition of India.[2][3] She was educated at the European School of Brussels, and then in the early 1980s at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, where she wrote for the student magazine Cantab.[4][5][5][6]

At the European School, she became friendly with Boris Johnson, later a journalist and politician.[7] Her sister, Shirin Wheeler, is an EU spokeswoman.[8]

Career

After Cambridge, Wheeler returned to Brussels and worked there for four years. In 1987 she was called to the Bar, practising from chambers in London at One Crown Office Row. In her work as a barrister, Wheeler specialises in mental health matters and discrimination claims. In January 2004 she was appointed to the B-Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown.[9] In 2009, she joined the Bar Disciplinary Tribunal as a barrister member.[10]

Of her legal work, Wheeler has stated:

My own experience, shared by many colleagues, is that a high proportion of discrimination cases we deal with are ill-founded. One colleague puts the figure at more than 60 per cent... Many unregulated advisors make a living bringing discrimination claims, and they do not always seem to have the best interests of the Applicant in mind.[11]

In February 2016, she became a Queen's Counsel.[12]

Family

On 8 May 1993, Wheeler married her childhood friend, Boris Johnson, whose divorce had "come through" a couple of weeks earlier.[13] They had met again and teamed up together in Brussels, where he was covering the European Parliament for The Daily Telegraph. Their eldest daughter was born on 12 June 1993.[13] Together they have four children, Lara Lettice, Milo Arthur, Cassia Peaches and Theodore Apollo.[5]

In September 2018, Johnson and Wheeler announced that they had separated "some time ago", following continuous allegations of marital infidelity against Johnson.[14] It was also announced that divorce proceedings had started.[15] Before their separation they shared a home in Islington.

References

  1. ↑ www.qcappointments.org
  2. ↑ By  Murtaza Ali Shah (2015-05-02). "London Mayor, wife wish to visit 'amazing' Pakistan | World". Geo.tv. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  3. ↑ Desk, Web. "London mayor, wife wish to visit Pakistan soon - The Express Tribune". Tribune.com.pk. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  4. ↑ Sir Charles Wheeler (obituary) at telegraph.co.uk
  5. 1 2 3 Family of influence behind Boris Johnson, 3 May 2008, from The Daily Telegraph at telegraph.co.uk
  6. ↑ Amit Roy, Boris gets on his bike from The Telegraph of Calcutta dated May 11, 2008, at telegraphindia.com
  7. ↑ Brian Wheeler, The Boris Johnson story dated 4 May 2008 at news.bbc.co.uk
  8. ↑ www.ec.europa.eu
  9. ↑ Marina Wheeler, One Crown Office Row profile at 1cor.com
  10. ↑ Marina Wheeler at 1cor.com
  11. ↑ Marina Wheeler, When some are more equal than others (2003), text online at 1cor.com
  12. ↑ Guardian Legal Network
  13. 1 2 Andy McSmith (13 February 2016). "Marina Wheeler, profile: The brains behind Boris Johnson". The Mayor’s wife couldn’t be more different from her husband – but are they on the same side of the EU debate?. The Independent, London. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  14. ↑ Osborne, Samuel (7 September 2018). "Boris Johnson announces divorce from barrister Marina Wheeler after 25 years of marriage". The Independent. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  15. ↑ https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-politics-johnson/former-british-foreign-secretary-boris-johnson-and-wife-to-divorce-idUSKCN1LN10P
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