BEHIND EVERY GREAT MAN...
America’s First Lady won hearts on her first UK visit. MARION MCMULLEN looks at the life of Dr Jill Biden
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Dr Jill Biden accompanied her husband US President Joe Biden on his trip to the UK and had tea with the Queen at Windsor Castle following the G7 summit in Cornwall. She also joined the Duchess of Cambridge for a visit to the Connor Downs Academy in Hayle, pictured above. 2
The English teacher made history by becoming the only First Lady to continue her own professional career after her husband became President. She did the same when Joe was Barack Obama’s Vice President, teaching at Northern Virginia Community College. Her security officers dressed up as college students so they could go undetected on the school’s campus. 3
The 70-year-old was brought up just outside Philadelphia in Willow Grove. The oldest of five sisters, she describes herself as an introvert, writing in her memoir she had no desire to “give any speeches, anytime, anywhere — just the thought of doing so made me so nervous I felt sick”. 4
Describing herself as a ‘Lifelong educator’ on her Twitter, Dr Biden has an impressive CV. Her qualifications include a Bachelor’s degree in English (she switched from fashion merchandising), a Doctorate in Education from the University of Delaware and two Masters’ degrees. 5
The presidential couple married in 1977 after being set up on a blind date by Joe’s brother. They went out for dinner and then watched the movie A Man And A Woman. Jill has revealed that she later phoned her mother at 1am and said: “Mom, I finally met a gentleman.” However, he had to propose several times before she finally
said yes. 6
The couple tied the knot at the United Nations chapel in New York in front of 40 wedding guests. Jill became mother to Beau, then three, and Hunter, then two, Joe’s sons from his first marriage to wife Neilia, who was tragically killed in a car accident along with baby daughter, Naomi. The two boys went on honeymoon with them. Joe and Jill had a daughter called Ashley in 1981, pictured right. 7
Jill has a reputation for being a bit of a prankster. She once sneaked into a close aide’s birthday party dressed as one of the caterers and surprised him with a drink and it is said she likes to put on a bobbed red wig and pop up unnoticed at events or to make her husband laugh.
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Joe Biden insists he would not be where he is without the love and support of his wife and their family. He has said: “They are my heart. Jill’s a mom, a military mom, and an educator.” After the 2020 presidential race, Jill posted a snap of herself with Joe and said: “He will be a President for all of our families.” 9 Jill did some amateur modelling as a student, and made a fashion statement on her visit to Britain by sporting a jacket with the word ‘Love’ emblazoned... a stark contrast with a coat worn by former First Lady Melania Trump bearing the message “I really don’t care, do you?”
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Jill lost her stepson Beau, pictured, to brain cancer at 46 in 2015, which she has described as a ‘shattering’ blow for herself and the President. She and Joe launched the Biden Cancer Initiative, which seeks to accelerate progress on life-saving new treatments.