Kimberly Quinn (formerly Fortier; ''née'' Solomon; born 1961) is an American
journalist
A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism.
Roles
Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
,
commentator and
magazine
A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
publisher
Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
and writer; latterly the publisher of British conservative news magazine ''
The Spectator
''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
''.
Early life
A native of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, she is one of two daughters of businessman Marvin Solomon and actress
Lugene Sanders
Trevalene Lugene Solomon (born September 17, 1934 or 1935) is an American retired actress and former child star. The peak of her career was during the mid-1950s. Before getting married and retiring from acting in the early 1960s, Solomon went un ...
. She is of Jewish heritage.
She majored in Victorian Studies at
Vassar College
Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...
.
Professional career
She has written for ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'', ''
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ' ...
'' and UK newspapers ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
'', ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', ''
Evening Standard
The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free newspaper, free of charge in London, Engl ...
'', and ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
''. She was the Communications and marketing director for
Condé Nast Publications
Condé is a French place name and personal name. It is ultimately derived from a Celtic word, "Condate", meaning "confluence" (of two rivers) - from which was derived the Romanised form "Condatum", in use during the Roman period, and thence to ...
in the UK. She took her position at ''The Spectator'' in 1996. On 24 November 2006, Kimberly Quinn resigned from her post at ''The Spectator''.
She has written a series of time travel adventures for young adults; the Chronicles of the Tempus series. The first work, ''The Queen Must Die'' (2010) was followed by ''The Queen at War'' (2013).
Personal life
In 1987, Quinn married American
investment banker
Investment banking is an advisory-based financial service for institutional investors, corporations, governments, and similar clients. Traditionally associated with corporate finance, such a bank might assist in raising financial capital by unde ...
Michael Fortier; the couple divorced in 2000, following revelations of her affair with Stephen Quinn, publisher of ''Vogue'' and ''
GQ'' magazines. In 2001, she married Quinn; during this marriage, she had an affair with
David Blunkett
David Blunkett, Baron Blunkett, (born 6 June 1947) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Employment from 1997 to 2001, Home Secretary from 2001 to 2004 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2005. ...
,
Home Secretary
The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...
in
Tony Blair's ministry. Quinn's three-year affair with David Blunkett ended acrimoniously in mid-2004. The affair was revealed by the ''
News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national "Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top" Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling ...
'' in August 2004, according to the prosecution in the ''
R v Brooks, Coulson and six others
''R v Coulson, Brooks and others'' was a trial at the Old Bailey in London, England, arising from the News International phone hacking scandal.
Pleas
At the start, Glenn Mulcaire, Neville Thurlbeck, James Weatherup and Greg Miskiw all pleaded g ...
'' trial in October 2013, after the newspaper had intercepted
voicemail
A voicemail system (also known as voice message or voice bank) is a computer-based system that allows callers to leave a recorded message when the recipient has been unable (or unwilling) to answer the phone. Calls may be directed to voicemail m ...
s.
During that period, Quinn gave birth to one son and became pregnant with a second child. The paternity of the two children became a matter of dispute. Blunkett's paternity of Quinn's elder child, William, was confirmed by DNA tests. Following the end of the affair between Quinn and Blunkett, moves by him to gain informal access to the first child were rejected by Quinn, and in early December 2004 Blunkett petitioned the
Family Division
The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...
of the
High Court to grant him legal access. Controversy around a number of matters arising from the affair, particularly concerns over the handling of the visa of Quinn's nanny, contributed to Blunkett's resignation in mid-December 2004. Shortly after Blunkett's resignation, it was revealed by the ''News of the World'' that Quinn had also had an affair with
Simon Hoggart, a political journalist and regular contributor to ''The Spectator''.
In February 2005, Quinn gave birth to a second son, Lorcan Quinn. A month later, Blunkett announced that DNA tests had revealed he was not the father of Quinn's second child.
Official ''Court Service'' report on the paternity case
Blunkett has said that Quinn's elder son attended a Jewish nursery.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quinn, Kimberly
1961 births
Living people
American expatriates in England
20th-century American women journalists
Date of birth missing (living people)
Vassar College alumni
Journalists from Los Angeles
20th-century American journalists
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American journalists
21st-century American women journalists
21st-century American women writers