An Evening with The Duke of Marlborough

Charles James Spencer-Churchill, 12th Duke of Marlborough (born 24 November 1955), styled Earl of Sunderland until March 1972 and Marquess of Blandford until October 2014, and often known as Jamie Blandford or Jamie Marlborough, is an English peer and the current Duke of Marlborough.

He is the eldest surviving son of the 11th Duke of Marlborough and his first wife, Susan Mary Hornby. As a member of the Spencer family, he is a distant relative of the war-time Conservative Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and of Diana, Princess of Wales, born Lady Diana Spencer. He is also a stepbrother of Christina Onassis by the second marriage of his father with Athina Livanos.

Born in Oxford. He was educated at Harrow School and the Royal Agricultural College.In a bid to safeguard the Blenheim Palace estate from the then Marquess's excessive behaviour, his father won a court battle in 1994 to ensure he never won control of the family seat, but their relationship may have improved later.

In 1995, he spent a month in prison for forging prescriptions. In September 2007, he was sentenced to six months in jail on two counts of dangerous driving and one of criminal damage following a "road rage" attack on another motorist's car. At the same time, he was banned from driving for three and a half years.

On the death of his father in 2014, the Daily Mail reported that he would inherit the title and quoted a spokeswoman for Blenheim Palace, who said "it was 'too early to say' if he will chose (sic) to live in the palace, which is open to the public." The newspaper also noted that, "Though Jamie is now in overall charge of the estate, perhaps mindful of his son's troubled history, the late Duke had insisted the board of trustees should have this power of veto".

However, the Oxford Mail reported that "A palace spokesman declined to comment on whether the 12th Duke – who had a well-publicised drug addiction – [would] inherit his family's residence, but it is understood he could become a trustee of the companies that run it." The Oxford Mail further stated that "[Blenheim] Palace will remain under the control of trustees as the late Duke of Marlborough's heir – Jamie Spencer-Churchill – inherited his father's title." On the other hand, The Daily Telegraph reported that "The responsibility of maintaining one of Britain's grandest country houses for future generations now passes to 58-year-old Jamie Blandford, as he is commonly known, following a remarkable turnaround in his relationship with his late father, who once described him as the 'black sheep' of his family."

On 24 June 2009, he appeared in a BBC Television documentary, Famous, Rich and Homeless, in which famous people were filmed spending three nights in the open with nothing but a sleeping bag, though he refused to "sleep rough". He claimed that on the first night he slept in the car park of a five-star hotel, though his sleeping bag was discovered unopened, and on the second night he demanded to be housed in a hotel. He refused to participate further despite giving an assurance that he would sleep rough on the third night, and ended his participation on that night. Another participant, Hardeep Singh Kohli, said that Blandford's behaviour was "disrespectful to all the people out there".

Former drug addict and ex-convict Jamie Blandford becomes 12th Duke of Marlborough after father dies

Jamie Blandford, once described by his despairing father as the 'black sheep' of the Spencer-Churchill family, is the new custodian of Blenheim Palace

Gordon RaynerBy Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter6:55PM BST 16 Oct 2014

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11168207/Former-drug-addict-and-ex-convict-Jamie-Blandford-becomes-12th-Duke-of-Marlborough-after-father-dies.html

His father once regarded Jamie Blandford as such a lost cause that he went to court in an attempt permanently to disinherit him.

But today the convicted burglar, drug addict and serial prisoner became the 12th Duke of Marlborough and custodian of Blenheim Palace following the death of his father at the age of 88.

The Spencer-Churchill family announced “with great sadness” that the 11th Duke, John George Vanderbilt Henry Spencer-Churchill, “passed away peacefully” this morning. His funeral will be held next Friday.

David Cameron, a friend of the Duke as well as his local MP, said: “I am greatly saddened to hear of the death of the Duke of Marlborough. To me, he was not only the vice-president of my [Witney Conservative] Association but also a good man and friend.

“His grace will be deeply missed by all those he worked alongside at Blenheim and by the town of Woodstock where he played such a positive and active role in the community he loved.

The responsibility of maintaining one of Britain’s grandest country houses for future generations now passes to 58-year-old Jamie Blandford, as he is commonly known, following a remarkable turnaround in his relationship with his late father, who once described him as the “black sheep” of his family.

Blandford, or His Grace as he will now be formally addressed, has more than 20 convictions going back 30 years for drug offences, burglary, criminal damage, numerous driving offences and even punching a police officer.

His well-documented battle with heroin and cocaine addiction – he once admitted spending £20,000 on cocaine in four months – strained his relationship with his father to breaking point, and in 1994 the two men faced each other in court to fight out the future of the dukedom and the £100 million Oxfordshire estate.

The 11th Duke became the first aristocrat for more than a century to attempt to use the courts to deny his direct heir his eventual title, and was ultimately thwarted because the 1706 act of Parliament that gifted Blenheim to the 1st Duke of Marlborough forbade any intervention in the inheritance.

But Blandford’s father managed to persuade the High Court that it had a duty to protect the estate for future generations, and his son was forced to agree to an agreement that ceded all executive power to a board of trustees that look after the estate.

Two years ago it emerged during a Channel 4 documentary about the family that Blandford had stayed clean of drugs for several years, earning something of a reprieve from his father, who agreed that he should inherit overall charge of the estate, though with trustees retaining a power of veto.

The 11th Duke said at the time: “I am fully confident that James will be able to keep this place going. But over the top of him – and over the top of me – are trustees. You can’t predict the future.

“Trying to keep Blenheim going is a very important part of the family’s history and life at the present time, and so what we’re trying to do is ensure that Blenheim is kept for future generations.”

The 12th Duke, who lives in a farmhouse on the estate, has the right to take up residence in the Palace with his family, but a spokesman for Blenheim Palace said it was “too early to say” whether he will choose to live in the house, which is open to the public, or remain in his current home.

The 11th Duke, a cousin of Sir Winston Churchill and a distant relative by marriage of Diana, Princess of Wales, was married four times, and leaves five children. His most recent marriage, in 2008, was to Lily Mahtani, an Iranian-born mother-of-three who was 30 years his junior.