Richard Dinan
Richard Dinan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Richard Assheton Dermot Dinan 1986 (age 39–40) |
| Education | St Edward's School, Oxford |
| Occupations | Businessman, author, former reality television personality |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Known for | Made in Chelsea and Pulsar Fusion |
| Notable work | The Fusion Age: Modern Nuclear Fusion Reactors (2017) |
| Television | Made in Chelsea |
| Title | Chief Executive Officer of Pulsar Fusion |
| Parent(s) | Lady Charlotte Curzon Captain John "Barry" Dinan |
| Relatives | Cressida Bonas (cousin) Edward Curzon, 6th Earl Howe (grandfather) |
Richard Assheton Dermot Dinan (born 1986) is a British businessman, author and former reality television personality.[1][2][3] He first gained public attention as a cast member of the E4 reality series Made in Chelsea.[4][5] Dinan later founded Pulsar Fusion, a company involved in developing nuclear fusion‑based propulsion technology.[6][7] He is also the author of a popular science book on nuclear fusion.
Early life and education
Dinan was born in 1986 in England to Lady Charlotte Curzon and Captain John "Barry" Dinan.[8] He is the grandson of Edward Curzon, 6th Earl Howe and through his maternal lineage, he is a descendant of Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe, a racing driver who won the 1931 Le Mans race.[9][10] He is also the first cousin of Cressida Bonas.[3][5]
Dinan grew up in Penn, Buckinghamshire and attended St Edward's School, Oxford but left after completing his GCSEs at age 16.[5][11] He trained briefly as a gunsmith with Holland & Holland before founding Ammunition, a short‑lived youth‑culture magazine.[11][9]
Career
In March 2012, Dinan joined the cast of the structured‑reality TV series Made in Chelsea, appearing as a supporting cast member from series 3 to 5 (2012–2013), with a brief return in series 10 (2015).[3] The series featured his development of a high‑tech wearable called the "Senturion".[5]
Dinan also founded Applied Fusion Systems (later renamed Pulsar Fusion) to develop compact fusion reactors for energy and spacecraft propulsion.[4] In 2017, Pulsar Fusion began work on a Spherical tokamak reactor inspired by research at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy.[4]
In 2017, Dinan authored The Fusion Age: Modern Nuclear Fusion Reactors.[12] In the same year, he was among the patrons at a Christie’s art auction benefiting the Prince’s Foundation “Children & the Arts,” which provides arts‑engagement programs for disadvantaged youth.[13]
Dinan serves as the chief executive officer of Pulsar Fusion.[14] During his tenure, Pulsar Fusion developed and successfully tested nitrous oxide and polyethylene‑based rocket engines in 2021 at a Ministry of Defence site in Salisbury.[15][16] In 2023, Pulsar Fusion introduced a fusion‑powered rocket concept called Sunbird.[17]
Bibliography
- Dinan, R. (2017). The Fusion Age: Modern Nuclear Fusion Reactors. Bletchley, UK: Applied Fusion Systems.
References
- ^ "Richard Dinan's gap-year party". Tatler. 8 February 2012.
- ^ Ingram, Simon (29 April 2021). "Why a reality TV star and a physicist are building a nuclear reactor in an English suburb". National Geographic.
- ^ a b c Whipple, Tom (13 September 2019). "Can Made in Chelsea's Richard Dinan make nuclear fusion a reality?". The Times.
- ^ a b c "The British reality TV star building a fusion reactor". BBC News. 19 April 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Richard Dinan: the posh blond, his Harry-dating cousin and why Made in". Evening Standard. 12 November 2012.
- ^ Weyer, Martin Vander (16 June 2022). "Can this Made in Chelsea star harness the power of nuclear fusion?". The Spectator.
- ^ ITER: The Giant Fusion Reactor: Bringing a Sun to Earth. Springer. 17 October 2019. ISBN 978-3-030-27581-5.
- ^ Eden, Richard (10 November 2013). "Prince Harry is 'taken under the wing' of Cressida Bonas's family". The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ a b "Meet Richard Dinan, Made in Chelsea's very own Richard Branson". 21 April 2013.
- ^ "Next Generation Entrepreneurs: Richard Dinan and Alex Nall-Cain". Spear's. 9 December 2011.
- ^ a b Eames, Tom; Wightman, Catriona; Agius, Nicola (22 December 2018). "Made in Chelsea's 32 poshest-ever stars, ranked". Digital Spy.
- ^ "UK's biggest privately owned nuclear fusion facility under construction at secret Buckinghamshire location". Bucks Herald. 18 June 2019.
- ^ "Christie's charity sale private view". Tatler. 6 March 2017.
- ^ Bassey, Amardeep (11 February 2020). "'Nuclear' rocket that could half space travel times tested in the UK". Hull Live.
- ^ "Nuclear fusion startup test fires plastic waste-powered rocket". New Atlas. 25 November 2021.
- ^ "Wiltshire take off: Nuclear fusion firm reveals it has launched UK's first chemical rocket in Salisbury". City AM. 22 November 2021.
- ^ Jeff Spry (15 April 2025). "Pulsar Fusion unveils vision for 'Sunbird' nuclear rocket to reach Mars in half the time (video)". Space.