Simon Frederick Marquis, 3rd Earl of Woolton (born 24 May 1958), styled Viscount Walberton between 1964 and 1969, is a British

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, there are 800 hereditary peers: 30 dukes (including six royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 108 viscounts, and 439 barons (not counting subsidiary ...

and businessman.

Early life and education

The only son of

Roger Marquis, 2nd Earl of Woolton Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...

, and his second wife (Cecily) Josephine Gordon-Cumming (1925–2012), later Countess Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, elder daughter of Sir Alexander Penrose Gordon-Cumming, 5th Baronet. He succeeded to the earldom and subsidiary titles at the age of 10 upon the death of his father in 1969. After attending

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England *Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States *Éton, a commune in the Meuse depa ...

, he went up to read Economics and Modern History at the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

, graduating MA in 1981.

Career

Lord Woolton was a director of New Boathouse Capital and

Chief Financial Officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...

Quayle Munro Quayle Munro was a merchant bank founded in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1983. The bank specialised in corporate finance advice. In 2012 the firm moved its headquarters to London. Quayle Munro was acquired by Houlihan Lokey in January 2018. History ...

,. Since 2018, he works for Houlihan Lokey UK as Corporate Chief Operating Officer. Lord Woolton began his career at S.G. Warburg & Co. Ltd. in 1982. Woolton was introduced to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

in 1979 (21 being the minimum age at which a peer can take his or her seat) where he sat until the

House of Lords Act 1999 The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given royal assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...

, which removed hereditary peers' automatic right of a legislative seat. A

Freeman of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

, Lord Woolton serves as

Master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

of the

Worshipful Company of Skinners The Worshipful Company of Skinners (also known as the Skinners' Company) is one of the Livery company, Great Twelve Livery Companies of the City of London. Originally formed as an association of those engaged in the Skinner (profession), trade ...

(for 2024/25).

Marriages and children

Woolton married

the Hon. ''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of cert ...

Sophie Birdwood, only child of Mark Birdwood, 3rd Baron Birdwood, in 1987. The Earl and Countess of Woolton had three daughters. Woolton and his first wife were divorced on 13 May 1997. He married secondly, on 28 October 1999, Mrs (Mary) Carol Chapman (''née'' Davidson), who has two daughters from a previous marriage. As Woolton has no sons and as there are no other surviving male-line descendants of the first earl, the

earldom Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...

and its subsidiary titles will become extinct upon the present earl's death.www.burkespeerage.com
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Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Woolton, Simon Marquis, 3rd Earl 1958 births Earls in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Living people People educated at Eton College Alumni of the University of St Andrews British chief financial officers

Woolton Woolton (; ) is a suburb of Liverpool, in Merseyside, England. It is an area located southeast of the city and bordered by Allerton, Gateacre, Halewood, and Hunt's Cross. At the 2011 Census, the population was 12,921. Overview Originally a ...