Felix Dennis was born on the 27th May 1947, in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey England, and was a spoken-word performer including as a poet, and the owner of Dennis Publishing, which was the first company to incorporate hobbyist and computer magazines, publishing in the UK. His career started in the late ‘60s, and continued until he passed away in 2014.
Have you ever wondered how rich Felix Dennis was at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Dennis’ net worth was as high as $300 million, an amount earned through his varied and successful career.
Felix Dennis Net Worth $300 Million
Felix was the son of a part-time jazz pianist who also operated a tobacconist’s shop, and mother Dorothy, who raised him by herself since his father emigrated to Australia when Felix was 12.
Felix also had a brother, Julian, and the three, including their mother, lived in Thames Ditton. In 1958, Felix became a pupil at St. Nicholas Grammar School in Northwood Hills, Middlesex, where he became interested in music, and with several friends formed the band Flamingos. Then in 1964 found his first bedsit, in Harrow, paying the rent by playing in R&B bands, and also held a job as a window display artist in department stores. After earning enough money, he enrolled at Harrow College of Art.
Felix’s professional career started in 1967 when he began working as a street seller for the underground counterculture magazine Oz. While at Oz, he befriended Jon Goodchild, who taught him about magazine design. Two years later, luck smiled upon him, when he wrote the first review of Led Zeppelin’s debut album. He received positive critiques for his creation, which resulted in him being promoted to the position of co-editor. However, fame never comes alone, and he became involved in one of the most infamous trials in English history, called “Schoolkids Oz”. Felix and the editor Jim Anderson brought fifth and sixth-grade children to edit the issue of Oz, which included Rupert the Bear cartoon strip in sexually explicit terms, which was deemed illegal by authorities, and resulted in the arrest of Anderson, Richard Neville, founder of Oz, and Dennis. Most charges were dismissed, however, he did serve time in prison on two lesser charges.
Felix then started his own magazine, and after Oz ceased to exist took over its cOZmic publication. Since then, Felix had created numerous successful magazines, covering topics from lifestyle, to computers, martial arts, automobiles and many other, reaching a number of more than 50 magazines before his death. Some of the most successful magazines include PC World, Computer Shopper, Maxim, Auto Express, CarBuyer and others, which increased his net worth to a large degree.
Felix was also an accomplished author; he published a number of poetry books, “A Glass Half Full” (2004), “Lone Wolf”, the same year, then “Island of Dreams” (2008), and “Homeless In My Heart” also in 2008, among others.
Felix received several prestigious awards for his work, including Marcus Morris Award in 1991, then Mark Boxer Lifetime Achievement Award from British Society of Magazines in 2008, and Lifetime Achievement Award at the British Media Awards in 2013.
Regarding his personal life, Felix was unmarried, but at the time of his death he had been in a romantic relationship with French hairdresser Marie-France Demolis, which had lasted for 20 years.
He was a philanthropist, mostly devoted to nature, as he started The Forest of Dennis Ltd in 2003, which changed its name in 2011 to The Heart of England Forest. On the 20th September 2013, he planted millionth three. In addition, he donated 12,500 laptops to secondary schools in St Vincent and the Grenadines.
At the time of his death, Felix owned Britannia Bay House, which he bought from now deceased musician David Bowie in 1994. After he bought it, Felix renamed it to Mandalay.
Felix Dennis passed away on the 22nd June 2014 in Dorsington, Warwickshire England, from throat cancer.
