John Frieda Dies at 75: the Hairdresser Who Shaped the Hair of Lady Di and Jackie Kennedy

John Frieda, the British hairdresser and stylist whose name today appears on bottles of hair products all over the world, died on 3 November, aged 75. His London salon announced that he died "peacefully and surrounded by his family". The cause of death has not been released.

His client list reads like an index of the twentieth century: Lady Di, Jackie Kennedy, Twiggy, Madonna, Nicole Kidman, Sarah Jessica Parker. But one of the turning points of his career came not from a princess but from television. In 1976 he created "the Purdey" haircut for Joanna Lumley, the actress from the series "The New Avengers".

He worked as a stylist for the big fashion and beauty magazines, and in 1988 the brand bearing his name was launched; today it is one of the references for hair care and styling. The brand's flagship salon is at 4 Aldford Street in London.

The brand said it was "deeply saddened" and described him as "one of the most influential figures in hairdressing". The Aldford Street salon wrote that he "believed in us and made us better".

In an industry where a new miracle serum is sold every season, Frieda is remembered for something older: scissors, a brush and an eye for what suits which woman. How many of today's hair brands will outlive their founders?