Mark Birley

Marcus Oswald Hornby Lecky Birley (29 May 1930 – 24 August 2007) was a British entrepreneur known for his investments in the hospitality industry.

Early life Mark Birley was the son of Sir Oswald Birley, the royal and society portrait painter, and the artist and gardener Rhoda Vava Mary Lecky Pike. His sister, Maxime de la Falaise, became a noted fashion model of the 1950s; Maxime's daughter, Loulou de la Falaise, was a muse to the fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent.

He was educated at Eton where he excelled at drawing. After doing his National Service he went up to University College, Oxford, to read Philosophy, Politics and Economics but he left after failing his first year exams.

Career In 1963, Birley founded Annabel's at Berkeley Square in the Mayfair district in central London. The club was named for his wife, the former Lady Annabel Vane-Tempest-Stewart, and it was the first of its kind: a member-only nightclub that catered to an exclusive clientele, including the Prince of Wales. He launched a men's fragrance line, Mark Birley for Men, in 1996, in collaboration with the perfumers Frédéric Malle and Pierre Bourdon. Birley also designed the former family offices of Peter Palumbo, Baron Palumbo, in the City of London into a member's club, The Walbrook Club, which opened in 2000.

In 1989 Birley established the Bath & Racquets Club on Brook's Mews.

Personal life On 10 March 1954, he married Lady Annabel Vane-Tempest-Stewart, daughter of the 8th Marquess of Londonderry. Mark and Annabel had three children: Rupert Birley (1955–1986; presumed dead), Robin Marcus Birley (born 1958) India Jane Birley (born 1961), who married Jonty Colchester (div. 1985). She later married Francis Pike.

As a child Birley's son Robin was mauled and badly scarred for life by a tiger at the private zoo of family friend John Aspinall (1926–2000). In 1986, Birley's other son, Rupert, disappeared in Togo and was never found. He is assumed to be deceased. India Jane sold Thurloe Lodge in 2011 for £17 million. His memorial service was held at St Paul's Church in Knightsbridge.