JP McManus' daughter-in-law Emma dies suddenly in Barbados

Emma McManus, daughter-in-law of horse racing magnate JP McManus, has died suddenly in Barbados. Picture; Stephen McCarthy / Sportsfile

Emma McManus, a young mother of three children and daughter-in-law of horsing racing magnate JP McManus, has died suddenly after falling ill in Barbados.

The 40-year-old Trinity graduate is the daughter of former Irish tennis star and retired businessman Peter Ledbetter, and is married to JP McManus' son John McManus. The couple have three young children under the age of nine.

Ms McManus died on Wednesday morning after falling ill at a private villa on the grounds of the luxury Sandy Lane resort, Barbados, purchased in the late 1990s by JP McManus, financier Dermot Desmond, and horse breeder John Magnier.

Members of the McManus and Ledbetter families had flown to the eastern Caribbean island to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s Eve together, in what has been a longstanding family tradition.

Informed sources said Ms McManus, originally from Blackrock, Co Dublin, awoke in her room in the early hours of yesterday and complained of “feeling unwell”.

Sources said Ms McManus was brought to a local medical centre where she was pronounced dead a short time later.

A Royal Barbados Police spokesman  said they had ruled out foul play and were treating it as a sudden death.

A post mortem is to be carried out on Ms McManus’s body to help find a cause of death, while will ultimately determine the police investigation.

A police spokesman said it was expected that “after the post mortem the investigation will be finished”.

He explained that local autopsies can take “up to a week”, however, this would be “up to the pathologist and the coroner”.

Sources described Emma and John as “a very private couple” who have three young children, and reside at a luxury property in Chelsea, London.

“It’s terrible, as far as is known Emma had no serious health issues. No one knows what exactly caused her death, there was no warning. Everyone is obviously devastated, it’s massively shocking.” 

“Emma was a vibrant, outgoing person and she was very well-liked by everyone; despite their obvious wealth they are two of the most down-to-earth people you could meet.” 

“We’re especially heartbroken for John and the children, what’s happened is every family’s worst nightmare. John is a really compassionate guy, our hearts go out to him.”

 Ms McManus is a graduate of Trinity College, Dublin, while her husband John, a former student at private school Glenstal Abbeyl, Murroe, Co Limerick, has built a successful career trading in antiques, sculpture and art.

The couple wed in Portugal in October, 2010.

Thoughts with the McManus & Ledbetter families after the sudden death of Emma McManus (40) yesterday in Barbados. Emma was married to JP's son John. The couple married in Portugal in 2010. May she Rest In Peace#RIP pic.twitter.com/PvTxc8JpjD

— Joe Seward (@JoeSeward1) December 31, 2020

JP McManus, a billionaire horse owner, businessman and philanthropist, reportedly pulled all nine of his horses who were due to race today.

Ms McManus’s father Peter Ledbetter, a graduate of TCD, UCD, and Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts, represented Ireland at tennis, and helped build up the late Tony Ryan’s commercial aircraft sales and leasing company Guinness Peat Aviation in the 1970s.

It’s understood the couple and their three children were in Limerick to watch the Shannonside hurling team, of which JP McManus has been a long-term sponsor, win their second All Ireland hurling championship in three years, on December 13, before they flew out to Barbados with family.

Informed sources said the two families were seeking advice on how best to proceed with funeral arrangements, in light of public health guidelines around the coronavirus pandemic and international travel.