Jubilant James: 'I'M GOING TO BE A DAD!'

After some turbulent years, Kate's brother finds love changes everything

- Judy Kean

He made no secret of the fact he wanted to be a successful entrepreneur. He launched several food businesses, describing himself as a “new age Willy Wonka”. He lived the high life in London, dating beautiful women and partying at the city’s top nightclubs. Depicted as a spoiled playboy, just about everything he did made headlines – because of who his sister had married.

Today, life is very different for James Middleton. The Princess of Wales’ younger brother lives on a smallholding in the English countryside, where he breeds dogs and keeps bees, sheep, goats and hens.

He still has a business, making raw dog food, but becoming hugely successful is no longer his priority. He is married to a French financial analyst and couldn’t hide his delight when he announced last month that he’s going to be a dad.

James, 36, is happier than ever, but getting to this stage of his life hasn’t been easy. He has been searingly honest about his struggles with his mental health and the toll ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and dyslexia have taken on him. In 2019, he bravely detailed his battle with depression, describing how he “sank progressively deeper into a morass of despair”. He acknowledged, “I know I’m richly blessed and live a privileged life. But it did not make me immune to depression.”