Jessica Cross was born and raised in Johannesburg. The youngest of a trio of daughters, and diminutive in size, Jessica has always described herself as being knee-high to a grasshopper – what she lacks in stature she makes up for in enthusiasm.

After gaining a general science degree (BSc) from the University of the Witwatersrand, Jessica joined the extractive industry to begin a career in mining finance that spanned three decades with three of the world’s largest mining companies. Jessica became known in the City of London’s Square Mile as Madam Gold, and a respected authority on the international bullion market, especially in gold financial derivatives, the topic of her PhD thesis completed at Nottingham University in 1993.

In 2012, Jessica gave in to a visceral yearning to go sheep farming. Swapping her City kitten heels for muck-caked green wellies came naturally and within a couple of years, Jessica found she was as happy as a pig in the proverbial. Initially in Hampshire and then Devon, Jessica ran a 100-strong flock of Southdown ewes, processing their fleece into premium wool duvets.

In 2022, Jessica reluctantly acknowledged that her age was counting against her physical ability to manage her flock. After a good cry, she hung up her lambing gear and shepherd’s crook before moving to Somerset. Now known as the Sleep Steward, Jessica still runs Southdown Duvets and has shipped premium wool bedding to chateaux, palaces and celebrities around the globe.

Throughout her life, Jessica has never been far from philanthropy and community initiatives. Historically, she has served as a Trustee of the Dominican Convent School, Johannesburg; a Trustee of the John Badley Foundation, Hampshire; was a Founding Patron and Trustee of the Educross Charitable Foundation, London, and a Trustee of the N’cdeluntu Weasley Community Foundation, Eastern Cape, South Africa.

She currently serves as a Public Governor of the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust and is a weekly volunteer in the Yeovil District Hospital.