Julie Montagu, Viscountess Hinchingbrooke

Julie Montagu, Viscountess Hinchingbrooke (born Julie Jean Fisher; February 17, 1972) is an American entrepreneur, yoga instructor, blogger, writer and television personality. She is married to Luke Montagu, Viscount Hinchingbrooke, who is the son and heir to John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich. Montagu began her television career as a cast member on the British reality series '' Ladies of London'' before hosting her own series on the ''Smithsonian Channel'' called '' An American Aristocrat's Guide to Great Estates''. Since 2021 she has run her own series, ''American Viscountess'', on YouTube.

Early life

Julie Fisher was born on 17 February 1972 to Thomas Fisher, and was brought up in Sugar Grove, Illinois, as one of five siblings. She went on to study computer science at Indiana University. Fisher moved to London to work for an internet-based company, and was working at a digital agency when she met Luke Montagu in 2003. She was a single mother at the time with two children, and had assumed he was not interested in her.

Three months after they began dating, the couple spent a weekend on the Isle of Wight and she noticed that his credit cards read ‘Viscount Hinchingbrooke’. Only then did he explain that he was a member of the aristocracy and his father was John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich. A year after they first met, they were married at Mapperton House, Dorset, the country estate of the Earl of Sandwich.

When Luke Montagu suffered years of side effects from being removed from prescription medication by an addiction clinic (and was later awarded £1.35 million in compensation), Julie Montagu began running yoga classes in nearby church halls in order to bring some money into the household. By that time, Luke was unable to continue in his position as director of the Met Film School so Julie became the sole supporter. 

According to a June 2020 magazine article, Julie Montagu is a "qualified yoga teacher, nutritionist and mindfulness guru".

Career

Julie Montagu started a blog, called the "Flexi Foodie" and wrote a successful cookbook, ''Superfoods: The Flexible Approach to Eating More Superfoods & Superfoods Superfast''. She founded the charity Council for Evidence-Based Psychiatry after Luke's recovery, based on their experiences.

She was then offered a position on the reality television series '' Ladies of London'' as her husband was recovering. She later said of the series, "We thought long and hard before accepting as it offered financial support for a while. But it was not fun to do. I was expected to behave in a way I wasn't, like an It girl or socialite, when I'm not. They edit you... You have to go along with things or you get fired. But you know it was a job. I was acting". She celebrated when it was cancelled after three seasons. In 2016, the couple took over the running of the Mapperton Estate. By that time, '' Far from the Madding Crowd'' had recorded some scenes at the estate.

The series brought financial stability which allowed the couple to invest further in the Mapperton Estate, turning an old stable block into a wedding venue. Julie also opened her own school of yoga on the grounds, but continues to practice yoga elsewhere, headlining an act at the Wanderlust yoga festival in Victoria Park, London. During the lead-up to the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Julie Montagu was interviewed on a number of occasions because she is a US citizen who married into British aristocracy; she was also an on-site commentator on the wedding for the BBC
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