Malia Obama – the elder daughter of former President Barack Obama – reportedly has a boyfriend.
In fall 2017, footage of Obama smooching another Harvard student at a football game leaked to TMZ. The Daily Mail quickly identified the student as Rory Farquharson, a Harvard sophomore from the UK.
Then, early in 2018, reporters snapped photos of the couple shopping together in New York City.
Below, we’ve rounded up some fascinating facts about Farquharson’s life.
Rory Farquharson is 19 years old. He is a British student who joined the Harvard class of 2020 in 2017.
Source: Business Insider, Harvard
Malia Obama is also 19 years old and is in her second semester at Harvard. Her parents, Barack and Michelle Obama, are graduates of Harvard Law School.
Obama was caught on camera smooching Farquharson (The Daily Mail identified him) at the Harvard-Yale football game in November 2017. TMZ published the footage.
Source: The Daily Mail, TMZ
In January 2018, Obama and Farquharson were seen shopping in New York City's Soho neighborhood.
http://instagr.am/p/BeS5ZpZF5Kr
Source: USA Today
Farquharson attended the Rugby School, a private school in England where the annual tuition is £35,000 ($47,000). Farquharson was "head of school" from 2015 to 2016.
Welcome back everyone, I hope you all enjoy the new term #wholepersonwholepoint pic.twitter.com/l454jZviPV
— Rugby School (@RugbySchool1567) January 9, 2018
Source: Business Insider
He played rugby and golf and was a cofounder of the Blue Bunsen Society, the school's chemistry club. Classmates told The Daily Mail that Farquharson was "quite a catch" and "very popular."
Congratulations to Rory who played for the Irish Exiles on Sunday #wholepersonwholepoint #rugby pic.twitter.com/LwL89MXdyl
— Rugby School (@RugbySchool1567) January 24, 2017
Source: Business Insider, Rugby School, The Daily Mail
In a letter to his 16-year-old self, which appeared in a Rugby School publication, Farquharson wrote, "You’re a lanky, over-confident public school boy, desperately trying to prove to your friends how much of a 'lad' you are and have failed miserably."
Source: Rugby School
Farquharson also wrote about being preoccupied with academic success, to the point that he experienced physical and mental-health issues.
Source: Rugby School
Farquharson interned with the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building in Northern Ireland. Its stated purpose is "to uphold and share the values and principles of democracy in order to build peace, stability and reconciliation."
It's been an absolute delight and pleasure to have this exceptional student @rory_farq from @Harvard spend this week with us in Belfast 🚀 pic.twitter.com/ICFnJT19h5
— Conor Houston (@ConorHouston_) June 9, 2017
Source: Harvard, Centre for Democracy and Peace Building
Farquharson also appeared in a rugby video played at the World Cup opening ceremony in 2015. Prince Harry appeared in the same video.
Source: The Telegraph
Farquarhson's father is Charles Farquharson, the chief executive of Insight Investment Management Limited, based in London. His mother is Catherine Farquharson, a qualified accountant.
Source: The Telegraph
The Farquharson family lives in a six-bedroom, detached home in Woodbridge, Suffolk, worth £1.6 million.
Source: Business Insider
The Daily Mail reported that Farquharson is related to Andrew Farquharson, who was an aide to the Queen.
Source: The Daily Mail
Farquharson has deleted his Twitter account. But he used to follow "banking-related accounts," according to The Telegraph. He also tweeted that President Trump's "populism" wouldn't last more than a year, The Telegraph reported.
Source: The Telegraph
Farquharson's Instagram account says he's a "student of law in Harvard," suggesting that he's preparing for a future at law school.
Source: Instagram
As for Malia, she was given one piece of advice by her mother before heading off to college: "Don't wind up on Page Six." Said Michelle Obama, "I don't know if she managed that."
Source: Business Insider
In 2016, Barack Obama told radio station WDCG he's pretty "relaxed" about his daughters dating. That's because Michelle Obama is "such a great example of how she carries herself, her self-esteem, not depending on boys to validate how you look or not letting yourself be judged by anything other than your character and intelligence," and also because "they have Secret Service."
Source: People