| Marquess of Blandford | |
| Issue: | Lady Olympia Spencer-Churchill |
| Full Name: | George John Godolphin Spencer-Churchill |
| Father: | James Spencer-Churchill, 12th Duke of Marlborough |
| Mother: | Rebecca Few Brown |
| Birth Date: | 1992 7, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | London, England |
George John Godolphin Spencer-Churchill, Marquess of Blandford (born 28 July 1992), styled as Earl of Sunderland until 2014, is a British aristocrat and polo player. He is a model and brand ambassador for La Martina, an Argentine polo clothing and accessories company.[1] [2] As the heir apparent to the Dukedom of Marlborough, he uses the courtesy title of Marquess of Blandford.
He is the son of Jamie Spencer-Churchill, 12th Duke of Marlborough and his first wife, Rebecca Mary Few Brown.[3] He is also a descendant of Consuelo Vanderbilt (first wife of the 9th Duke of Marlborough).[4]
He and his family are notable for being involved in a high-profile legal dispute around 1993, when his paternal grandfather (the 11th Duke of Marlborough) sought to disinherit Lord Blandford's father.[5] Since his father has had a controversial past, including serving time in jail for forging prescriptions and road rage, Lord Blandford was announced as the financial beneficiary of his grandfather's estate.[6] His inheritance was to include Blenheim Palace, a 187-room mansion set in 2,000 acres in Oxfordshire.[7] [8]
He was educated at Harrow School, where he was captain of the school's polo team.[9] From 2011 to 2014, he attended University College London, where he studied town planning.[10]
In 2015, he started working as an aviation broker at JLT Group in London.[11] In 2019, he became a broker at the London office of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., an American insurance brokerage.[11]
He began serving as a model and brand ambassador for the La Martina brand of polo clothes and accessories in 2015.[12] [13] His "Blenheim Polo Team" plays at Cirencester Park Polo Club in Gloucestershire.
From December 2018 to January 2019, he and three friends successfully rowed across the Atlantic Ocean in a time of 35 days, finishing second in the 2018 Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.[14] [15] He helped raise over £850,000 for the Starlight children's charity in the process.
Lord Blandford married on 8 September 2018 at St Mary Magdalene Church, Woodstock,[16] Camilla Elizabeth Antonia Thorp[16] (b. 7 April 1987), now styled as Marchioness of Blandford. She is the eldest daughter of architect James Nicholas Thorp and interior designer Philippa Clare Thorp (née Thomas), of Drayton House, East Meon, Hampshire, and a descendant of the baronets Tempest of Tong, Yorkshire.[17] Attendees of the wedding included Lady Violet Manners, Lord and Lady Bamford, Andrew Parker-Bowles, and Lord Milford Haven. They have a daughter, Lady Olympia Arabella Kitty Spencer-Churchill (born 10 September 2020).[18]