Iona Annabelle Neilson (formerly Rothschild; 31 March 1969 – 12 July 2018) was a British socialite, fashion model, author and television personality. She first gained media attention as the muse of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen. She appeared as a cast member on the Bravo reality television series Ladies of London (2014–2015).
Neilson was the first wife of Nathaniel Rothschild, 5th Baron Rothschild, from the Rothschild banking family of England.
Iona Annabelle Neilson was born into a wealthy, aristocratic family at King's College Hospital in London, England, on 31 March 1969, the middle child and younger daughter of Maxwell Frederick Neilson, an investment and property advisor, and his wife, Marchesa Elizabetta. She had an elder sister.
Neilson split her time between her family's home in Chelsea, London, and her family's country estate, Chiltern House in the Chiltern Hills.
Neilson attended at Lady Eden's School on Victoria Road, Kensington, where she was held back a year. At the age of eleven, she joined her sister at Cobham Hall School, a private day and boarding school, housed in Cobham Hall in Gravesend, Kent, where she caught up again. Her school friends included Francesca Amfitheatrof. She finished her education with no qualifications at sixteen.
Neilson was randomly attacked by a man during her gap year in Perth, Western Australia, at the age of sixteen. She was tied to a tree and continuously beaten during the attack, which lasted two hours before she broke free. She received facial reconstructive surgery in the aftermath, having been left disfigured. She fell into a deep depression and became a heroin addict; she was sober by the end of her twenties. She had been travelling in Australia with her paternal cousin, Guy Greville, 9th Earl of Warwick, who owned a fruit-bottling company there. She later said her addiction saved her "because otherwise I would have killed myself,". Her attacker was later convicted of killing three women.
Neilson began working as a fashion model during her early twenties. She became the muse of the fashion designer Alexander McQueen at 22, and continued so until his death in 2010. She was also the muse of John Galliano. She walked in fashion shows for McQueen and Galliano throughout the 1990s and early 2000s.
Neilson made an unsuccessful attempt at becoming an actress in 2000, after taking several screen tests. She starred in a film to advertise the Alexander McQueen men's collection. The role required her to be nude and to simulate sexual intercourse with a male model.
Neilson appeared twice in the 2000 VOGUE portfolio, How Many People Does It Take to Make a Dress?, where she depicted designers and their support groups.
Neilson was signed to the Sarah Doukas-founded modelling agency Storm Management in 2007.
Neilson posed for Lee Jenkins wearing Sarabande's Look 42 for the magazine's March 2007 issue.
In 2007, Neilson worked recruiting business for the American businessman Carlos Almada's private members' club, Automat on Berkeley Square.
Neilson was an original cast member on the Bravo (U.S.) reality television series Ladies of London. The series chronicled the personal and professional lives of six women who lived in London. The first series premiered on 2 June 2014, with Juliet Angus, Caprice Bourret, Marissa Hermer, Noelle Reno, and Caroline Stanbury, while Luke Henderson served as a recurring cast member. The debut episode attracted 1.17 million viewers. Neilson published blogs on BravoTV.com weekly. The finale episode was aired on 21 July 2014. In March 2015, the network renewed the show for a second series. She returned to the main cast. The second series premiered on 7 September 2015. The finale episode aired on 9 November 2015. In December 2015, she announced her departure from the show in a post to her Instagram account. She appeared in nineteen episodes.
Neilson mentored the fashion designer Conchita Pérez for Pérez's fashion show, which took place in East London. She often modelled at the London Fashion Week clothing trade show.
Neilson was the author of the Me Me Me children's and teenage, and picture book series. The first instalment, Angry Me (ISBN 9780992872878), was published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 18 August 2015. The second and third instalments, Messy Me (ISBN 9781910884010) and Dreamy Me (ISBN 9781910884027), were both published by Fat Fox Books Ltd on 19 January 2016. Angry Me was about her anger surrounding her struggles with dyslexia, Messy Me was about her sister, and Dreamy Me was about the fantasies she had during her recovery following her horse riding accident.
Neilson wrote an autobiography, McQueen and I (ISBN 9780753555125), which was published by Virgin Books on 14 February 2016. The book focused on her life with Alexander McQueen.
Neilson made her final on-screen appearance in a cameo role during the biographical documentary film McQueen. The documentary focused on the life and career of Alexander McQueen, and was released during the 2018 Tribeca Festival, on 22 April.
Neilson modelled in Naomi Campbell's Fashion for Relief fundraiser, in aid of White Ribbon Alliance – Haiti, at Somerset House on the Strand, London, on 18 February 2010.