Terence Conran surprises Jasper Conran by making him his heir His mother, the writer Shirley Conran, disclosed in July that Jasper had not spoken to her for 10 years. The author of Lace and Superwoman, who was the first of Sir Terence's two wives, said: "He won't tell me what the problem is." Shirley, who divorced Sir Terence when Jasper was two years old, added: "We have seen each other in a crowd a couple of times and he said on one occasion that he knew I wanted to know what it was about, and that he would tell me, but he hasn't done so." Jasper later said: "While I do understand that my mother has a book to publicise, I consider my relationship with her to be a private matter, and not one which should be discussed in a public forum." Sir Terence will remain as chairman of the chain's parent organisation, Conran Holdings, which oversees brand licensing, consultancy, architectural work and has restaurant interests.