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Marie-France van Heel

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Marie-France van Heel
Van Heel in 2026
BornJanuary 1970 (age 56)
Roslyn, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Other nameFrankie van Heel
EducationFitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Occupations
  • Businesswoman
  • marketing executive
Known forSpouse of the prime minister of the United Kingdom (2026–present)
Spouse
​
(m. 2000)​
Children3

Marie-France van Heel (born January 1970) is a marketing executive, who is married to Andy Burnham, the prime minister of the United Kingdom and the leader of the Labour Party.

Early life and education

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Van Heel was born in January 1970 in Roslyn, Pennsylvania, United States, to Dutch parents.[1][2] As a child, Van Heel lived in the Netherlands and Belgium.[3] In the late 1980s, she moved to the United Kingdom to read English at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.[2][4]

Van Heel met Andy Burnham while at Cambridge. In January 1992, while in a relationship with Burnham and with his consent, she appeared on the television dating game show Blind Date, where she went on a blind date with Will Harris, who later became marketing director of the Conservative Party.[5][6]

Career

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After graduating from the University of Cambridge, van Heel worked in various roles in marketing across a variety of companies. She worked at Sky and was among the team that worked on the logo designs for the BBC and England Rugby.[1] Van Heel worked for three years at her own firm, MVH Marketing, before dissolving it in 2011.[7] She became chief strategy officer for London-based campaign designer Heavenly in 2022, joined the board of directors of Manchester-based electric vehicle charging network Be.EV in 2024,[8] and became chief marketing officer of the latter's parent firm Iduna Infrastructure.[4][9]

At the time of Burnham's 2026 Labour Party leadership election campaign, she was sitting on the board of humanitarian organisation Plan International. With them, she had worked with Marie Curie, Alzheimer's Society, Great Ormond Street Hospital, and Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust.[4][10]

Personal life

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Van Heel and Burnham married in 2000,[11] and have a son and two daughters.[8][12][13] Van Heel joined Burnham for his 2015 Labour Party leadership election campaign but subsequently avoided the public eye.[8]

References

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  1. 1 2 McKiernan, Jennifer. "Who is Andy Burnham's wife, Marie-France van Heel?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 July 2026. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
  2. 1 2 Clarke, Holly (22 July 2026). "Who is Andy Burnham's wife Marie-France van Heel after Downing Street move". Liverpool Echo. Archived from the original on 5 August 2026. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
  3. ↑ McKiernan, Jennifer (24 June 2026). "How 'coolest girl' Marie-France van Heel won Burnham's heart". BBC News. Archived from the original on 25 June 2026. Retrieved 29 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "Andy Burnham's wife, Marie-France van Heel: what she does, how they met and their family life together". Cosmopolitan. 19 June 2026. Archived from the original on 20 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  5. ↑ "Andy Burnham let his wife go on Blind Date and it's as amazing as it sounds". The Independent. 21 May 2015. Archived from the original on 20 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  6. ↑ Blackman, Lionel (30 June 2026). "Former Epsom job centre worker hopes to question next PM in Parliament". Epsom & Ewell Times. Retrieved 16 July 2026.
  7. ↑ Clatworthy, Ben. "Who is Andy Burnham's wife, Marie-France van Heel?". The Times. Archived from the original on 20 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Atkinson, Sophie (21 June 2026). "Why Andy Burnham's wife Marie-France Van Heel shuns the spotlight". The i Paper. Archived from the original on 22 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  9. ↑ Curtis, Bill; Wright, Oliver. "Andy Burnham faces questions over contracts for campaign donor". The Times. Archived from the original on 25 June 2026. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  10. ↑ Bickerstaff, Isaac (22 June 2026). "Who is Andy Burnham's wife, Marie-France van Heel?". Tatler. Archived from the original on 24 June 2026. Retrieved 22 June 2026.
  11. ↑ "Andy Burnham's wife Marie-France attacks his rivals on Twitter". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 25 August 2025. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  12. ↑ Prince, Rosa (22 June 2015). "Andy Burnham's boast about his wife's business credentials is pretty cool". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 13 January 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  13. ↑ Vacher, Dod (2001). Dod's Guide to the General Election, June 2001. Vacher Dod Publishing. ISBN 978-0-905702-32-2.
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