Sir Richard Branson

Sir Richard Branson to Serve as an Air Asia Stewardess

Filed under: Wings, Charity, Men's Style, Wealth

t may not be what everyone would call a good time, but if your sense of adventure includes being served cocktails by one of the world's richest men dressed in a skirt, then head on over to Air Asia. Because in short order, they'll have none other than Sir Richard Branson serving as a stewardess aboard one of their flights.

The development resulted from a friendly bet between two Formula One team owners: Branson and his Virgin Racing team on one hand, and Tony Fernandes and his Lotus Racing team on the other. Both are newcomers to the sport, and both own their own airlines (Virgin Atlantic and Air Asia, respectively). So they made a little wager: whoever's team fared worse in this, their first season on the grid, would have to serve as a flight attendant – in drag – on the other's airline.

Having won the bet, Fernandes plans to place Branson on a long-haul flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to London, England – a flight for which he'll be selling tickets to raise money for charity.

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Tags: air asia, branson, flight attendant, richard branson, sir richard branson, stewardess, tony fernandes, virgin

Who Should Play Sir Richard Branson In New Movie?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wealth

Variety is reporting that David Mirkin who wrote "The Simpsons Movie" is the person who will handle film adaptation of billionaire Sir Richard Branson's memoir "Losing My Virginity." Steven Paul acquired the rights from Branson and is producing the through Junction Films along with Mirkin. Acording to the article in Variety, Branson has already been cooperating with interviews for the movie which centers around his autobiography which was published in 1998 and updated in 2005.

Who should play Branson in the movie? Whoever it is should be willing to recreate some of Branson's most infamous stunts and be equally comfortable in drag as riding in hot-air balloons. My choice, British actor Paul Bettany. He's got the look and the athleticism and I think he could capture Branson's brilliant wackiness. That's not Branson's choice though. In an interview recently when answering the question of who should play him in a movie of his life he choose "Twilight" star Robert Pattinson because "he's English ... and he's young!"

Branson meanwhile has entered the world of film production with his new company Virgin Produced. His first project is with McG, a "300-style" movie based on the voyages of Christopher Columbus.

Tags: richard branson, sir richard branson, virgin

Richard Branson Dedicates Spaceport America's First Runway

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Sir Richard Branson was all smiles in New Mexico on October 22 as he and Governor Bill Richardson were on hand to open the world's first commercial spaceport in New Mexico. Spaceport America will be used by Virgin Galactic, Branson's space tourism company. The first commercial flights from the spaceport are planned to happen within the next 18 months.

The event included a fly by with an aircraft carrying SpaceShip Two, the spacecraft which recently had its first solo test flight. For Branson, this is the realization of a long-held dream and Richardson proclaimed the event "a great day for the state of New Mexico." Tickets for the suborbital space rides aboard SpaceShipTwo cost $200,000 and the 150-minute flights will give space tourists around five minutes of weightlessness. Virgin Galactic has said that it already has more than $50 million in reservations for the flights.

One downside is that, as AOL News reported, a recent study shows that space travel could ramp up the speed of global warming. The engines on these ships produce more black carbon than normal engines and if the company launches regular, frequent space trips, the ships could deposit a layer of soot high in the stratosphere. The effects of regular space travel on ozone production could be seen in just 10 years.

Check out video of the dedication featuring Governor Richardson and Sir Richard Branson after the jump.

Tags: bill richardson, Richard Branson, sir richard branson, spaceport america, Virgin Galactic

Continue reading “Richard Branson Dedicates Spaceport America's First Runway”

Virgin Galactic Unveils Spaceshiptwo

by Carrie N. Culpepper (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Only 450 people have ever been to space, but if Sir Richard Branson has his way, that number will climb - and quickly.

On Monday at dusk in the Mojave Desert, Branson unveiled his latest baby, Spaceship2, pictured at right, the second in his fleet of intergalactic shuttles. SS2 was designed to take thousands of private astronauts into space after test programming and all required U.S. government licensing and regulatory approvals have been completed, which, could could take quite some time.

"This is truly a momentous day," said Branson. "The team has created not only a world first but also a work of art."

Tags: new mexico, sir richard branson, space travel, virgin galactic, virgin space ship enterprise

Continue reading “Virgin Galactic Unveils Spaceshiptwo”

Abu Dhabi Sheikh Invests In Branson's Space Tourism Project

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Last time I wrote about Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan he was flying horses to Abu Dhabi. He's in the news again with a big purchase. The Telegraph reports that he has bought a 32 percent stake in Richard Branson's space tourism project, Virgin Galactic ,for $280 million. The deal, which was done through the sheikh's company Aabar, puts the value of Virgin Galactic at $900 million even though it hasn't begun to offer flights yet. The deal represents a significant vote for the viability and inevitable profitability of space travel. This deal means that Abu Dhabi will be hosting Virgin Galactic tourism and research flights. There is also a plan to build spaceport facilities in Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile Sir Richard Branson is showing off the WhiteKnightTwo (VMS Eve), at the Experimental Aircraft Association's 2009 AirVenture annual fly-in and convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The spacecraft that will carry the tourists, SpaceShipTwo, should begin testing later this year. No date for the start of commercial operations has been set yet but around 300 people have paid the $200,000 for an advance space ticket.

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Tags: abu dhabi, AbuDhabi, sheikh mansour, SheikhMansour, sir richard branson, SirRichardBranson, space tourism, SpaceTourism, virgin galactic, VirginGalactic

Branson's Latest Place to Play: The Lodge at Verbier

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

For many skiing is one of the saving graces of winter, one of the few things that make the snow and cold worthwhile. This time of year a trip to the Swiss Alps for great skiing, great food, and great comfort sounds like such a treat -- and it really will be if you're headed to Sir Richard Branson's latest resort getaway: The Lodge, Verbier.

The most expensive chalet in the Alps, it just opened last month. According to this review it's quite the haven of luxury and class, as well it should be considering costs will run you about £36,250/week.

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Tags: alps, branson, mountains, resort, sir richard branson, SirRichardBranson, ski, skiing, tourism, travel, traveling

Virgin Galactic Reveals Spaceship Designs

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Sir Richard Branson is so excited about the design for the Virgin Galactic spaceship designs he's willing to wear them. Yesterday, Branson recently showed off the design of Virgin Galactic's new space launch system based on the X Prize-winning technology of SpaceShipOne. The White Knight Two carrier aircraft is being built at Scaled Composites in the Mojave Desert and should begin flight testing this summer. The mothership is the world's largest, all carbon composite aircraft and is powered by four Pratt and Whitney PW308A engines to launch SpaceShipTwo and its eight astronauts into sub-orbital space flight. SpaceShipTwo is now 60% complete. It's good news for those eager for space travel, already 80 of SpaceShipTwo's first passengers have gone through medical assessment and preliminary training. Thousands more have indicated their eagerness to board experience space flight once Virgin Galactic is operational.

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Tags: sir richard branson, SirRichardBranson, space tourism, space travel, spaceshiptwo, virgin galactic

The name's Branson, Richard Branson

by Anne Metz (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Luxury Travel & Hotels, Events, Celebrity Shopping

British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson is about to step into a new role: acting.

Expanding the Branson empire from his Virgin brands (Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Mobile, Virgin Records), Sir Richard will make a cameo appearance in the upcoming Bond movie, Casino Royale. Casino Royale will star the new Bond, Daniel Craig. Of course, Sir Richard will not be the only cameo actor in the film. According to reports, Branson will be accompanied by his 19-year-old son, Sam. Just in case you are worried about his acting abilities, keep in mind that this is not Branson's first appearance on the big screen. Sir Richard and Sam have both appeared in the film Superman Returns.

According to Branson, the film's producer Barbara Broccoli contacted him to see if he would be interested in appearing during a scene at the Miami Airport. Of course, the Branson boys won't be cameo-ing next to just any airline -- they'll only appear with Branson's own Virgin Atlantic. Talk about product placement!

Tags: Branson, James Bond, JamesBond, Sir Richard Branson, SirRichardBranson, Virgin Atlantic, VirginAtlantic

Branson Plants His Flag At The World

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Sir Richard Branson showed up in Dubai this week to ceremoniously plant the Union Jack on the Great Britain island at the The World development. The event was part of the debut of Virgin Atlantic Airways’ direct flights between the United Kingdom and Dubai. Branson jumped out of a red London telephone box dressed in a colorful Union Jack suit. Development company Nakheel also announced that 90 percent of the islands of The World have been created. While in Dubai, Branson also talked about his favorite subject, space, saying that he plans to make Virgin the world's first commercial spaceline and that they will be sending passengers into space in sub-orbital craft starting in late 2008.

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Tags: dubai, nakheel, sir richard branson, SirRichardBranson, space, the world, virgin, virgin airways

Sir Richard Branson

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