Joan Templeman, the wife of Richard Branson, has died at the age of 80, the “heartbroken” British business magnate announced on social media.

The Virgin Group co-founder made the announcement Tuesday on Instagram, calling Templeman “my best friend, my rock, my guiding light, my world.

“Heartbroken to share that Joan, my wife and partner for 50 years, has passed away,” Branson said in the post. “She was the most wonderful mum and grandmum our kids and grandkids could have ever wished for.”

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He did not reveal of a cause of death.

Branson, 75, and Templeman met in 1976 before marrying in 1989 on Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands. They had three children together — Holly, 44, Sam, 40, and Clare, their first daughter who died in 1979 four days after bei

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