Kimberly Quinn

Kimberly Quinn (born 1961 as Kimberly Solomon, also formerly known as Kimberly Fortier) is an American journalist, commentator and magazine publisher. Latterly the publisher of British conservative news magazine "The Spectator", the controversy surrounding her affair with British Labour Home Secretary David Blunkett led to his December 2004 resignation. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4051777.stm BBC profile] ] [ [http://www.jewishquarterly.org/060302.shtml A brief biography in The Jewish Quarterly] ]

Biography

A native of Los Angeles, California, she is one of two daughters of businessman Marvin Solomon and his actress wife Lugene Sanders. She majored in "Victorian Studies" at Vassar College and later studied at Oxford University. She worked at "Cosmopolitan" magazine and then edited "Woman's Day". Subsequently she has written for several publications, including "The Wall Street Journal", "Vogue", "Erotic Review", and UK newspapers "The Daily Telegraph", "The Times", "Evening Standard", and "The Independent". Before taking her position at "The Spectator" in 1996, she was the Communications and Marketing Director for Condé Nast Publications in the UK.

In 1987 she married American investment banker Michael Fortier; the couple divorced in 2000 following revelations of her affair with publisher Stephen Quinn. The following year she married Quinn, the managing editor of "Vogue" and "GQ" magazines. Despite her reported affair with Mr Blunkett, the couple reconciled in 2004.

Affair with Blunkett

Mrs Quinn's affair with Blunkett, which reportedly began shortly after her wedding to Mr Quinn, ended acrimoniously in mid 2004. During that period Mrs Quinn gave birth to one son and became pregnant with a second child. David Blunkett contended that he was the father of both children, although Mr Quinn (who had a vasectomy reversal operation following his wedding) and Mrs Quinn both strongly denied this. However, DNA tests later proved that Mr Blunkett is the father of Mrs Quinn's elder child, William (see David Blunkett paternity case).

Following the end of the affair, moves by Blunkett to gain informal access to the first child were rejected by Mrs Quinn and in early December 2004 Blunkett petitioned the Family Division of the High Court to grant him legal access. Mrs Quinn, heavily pregnant, was admitted to hospital prior to the hearing; her petition that it should be deferred (on the grounds of her ill-health) until her child was born was rejected. The matter remains sub judice.

Controversy around a number of matters arising from the affair, particularly concerns over the handling of Mrs Quinn's nanny's visa, contributed to Mr Blunkett's resignation in mid-December 2004. A number of newspapers alleged that Mrs Quinn had given details of these matters (which also included her use of government-issued rail tickets and his having supposedly told her classified information) to the press, as part of her strategy in opposing Mr Blunkett's legal petition.

Shortly after Blunkett's resignation it was revealed by the "News of the World" that Mrs Quinn had also had an affair with Simon Hoggart, a political journalist and regular contributor to "The Spectator". [cite web
url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1479401/Third-man-confesses-in-the-Quinn-affair.html
title=Third man confesses in the Quinn affair - Telegraph
publisher=telegraph.co.uk
accessdate=2008-06-12
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On February 2, 2005, Quinn gave birth to a second son, Lorcan. A month later, on March 4, Blunkett announced that DNA tests had revealed that he was not the father of Quinn's second child. Stephen Quinn angrily denounced Blunkett's renewed interference in his family's life the following day. [ [http://www.courtservice.gov.uk/View.do?id=2946 Official "Court Service" report on the paternity case] ]

On November 24, 2006, Mrs Quinn resigned from her post at "The Spectator".

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