Matt Fiddes
Matt Fiddes, (born 18 May 1979) is a British martial artist and fitness trainer. He has worked with Michael Jackson, Britney Spears and other celebrities and currently runs a chain of martial arts schools.
Career
Fiddes was born in Swindon, Wiltshire, the son of John Fiddes, an engineer and Majella Fiddes, a lawyer, with four children. His Mother Majella passed away after a long fight with breast cancer on 25 May 2012. As a schoolboy growing up in Swindon, Wiltshire, he was bullied and turned to martial arts to protect himself. In 1997, at the age of 17, he opened his first martial arts school in Barnstaple, Devon, with only £100.
Fiddes' franchise has four different categories: Mighty Matts, Junior, Adults and Ladies Only. His franchise provides training in a range of martial arts; he holds a Black Belt in both Kickboxing and Kung Fu, and is a 7th Degree black belt master in Tae Kwon Do. In 2007 Fiddes won ‘Instructor of the Year Award’ from Martial Arts Illustrated Magazine
Celebrity clients
Fiddes has trained actors, models, musicians and professional footballers. Fiddes worked as Michael Jackson's bodyguard for free for a few days in 2002. He met the superstar through his friend TV star Uri Geller. He has worked with, Roxanne Pallett, Peter Andre, Jessica Wright, Tito Jackson, Uri Geller and Danielle Lloyd
In September 2010 Fiddes claimed that he was the biological father of Michael Jackson's third child, Prince Michael Jackson II (nicknamed "Blanket"). However, he says, "I never asked Michael if Blanket was mine and he never told me." In 2012 Fiddes claimed he would fly to Los Angeles in June in order to legally assert paternity and consequent legal guardianship of Blanket. He changed his story, claiming now that, "I sat there and asked the question: 'Is Blanket my child?' He said: 'He’s my child, Matt, but I used your sperm to produce him.'". He had initially claimed he was going to do this in January 2011, this never materialized.
Personal life
Fiddes was married to Marcia Louise Loscombe, before divorcing from her in 2010. They have three children together. Since then, Fiddes has been linked with big brother star Chanelle Haynes and Rebecca Coker and Bianca Gascoigne Matt married Popstar Moniqe Foxx (19) in Witbank, South Africa, on Saturday 28 July 2012.
In September 2010 it was claimed that Fiddes was the biological father of Michael Jackson's third child, Prince Michael Jackson II (nicknamed "Blanket").
Other projects
Fiddes, a victim of bullying when he was at school, began his own campaign in 2007 aimed at educating children from a young age that bullying and racism have detrimental affects on the lives of themselves and the people around them. The NOBULL campaign has gained the support of Jermaine Jackson, who suffered from bullying and racism while on Celebrity Big Brother 2007 (UK). The National Society for Children and Family Contact has also backed the NOBULL campaign.
Fiddes, in addition to his work with his martial arts brand, has built up the company Fiddesrooms. Fiddesrooms aims to supply accommodation for those in the North Devon area.
Most recently, he has been working with injured war veterans at the military's medical rehabilitation unit at Headley Court, near Epsom, Surrey. Fiddes and his instructors have devised bespoke martial arts programmes for military personnel badly injured while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of the troops he has worked with have lost both their legs but have regained mobility with prosthetic limbs.