British Apple designer gets Who's Who entry

Jonathan Ive, designer of the Apple iMac and iPod

A 39 year-old industrial designer who grew up in Chingford in Essex, has been saluted for his achievements at Apple Computer over the past decade by being included in the latest edition of the UK's Who's Who. 

Jonathan Ive, now senior vice president of industrial design at Apple, was head of the teams that created the iMac and iPod, devices which turned the fortunes of the company around and have been iconic consumer must-haves ever since. 

Ive studied art and design at Newcastle Polytechnic (now Northumbria University) in the 1980s, and co-founded his own design studio, Tangerine, in London in 1990.

One of Tangerine's clients was Apple, and Ive moved to a job at the company's Cupertino headquarters in 1992 at a time when Apple was at a low ebb.

The return of Steve Jobs in 1997 saw a burst of renewed creative energy at Apple that resulted in the iMac G3 and iPod initiatives.

Ive was the winner of inaugural Designer of the Year award from London's Design Museum in 2002.

A statement on Ive's personal website reads: "Reluctance to answer personal questions means very little is known about Jonathan's private life.

"Jonathan is said to live modestly, inhabiting a two-bedroom house near Apple's headquarters in Cupertino and his only concession to this lifestyle is a top-of-the-range Aston Martin coupé."

Modesty aside, Ive does attract celebrity followers. "Jonathan's fame has also brought celebrity admirers such as Bono and David Byrne and some of these have turned into friends," says the statement.

"Specifically Jonathan is good friends with fashion designer Paul Smith and DJ John Digweed."

Also include in the revised Who's Who is the latest Dr Who, David Tennant, although under his given name, David John McDonald.