Background
Her father, Stuart Wheeler, is an entrepreneur and political activist for the United Kingdom Independence Party, and mother Tessa (née Codrington) is a photographer. Through her mother, she is the descendant of many royal and noble figures, including Henry VII.
Career
Wheeler is the second of three children. She has an older sister, Sarah, and a younger sister Charlotte. As a child, Wheeler lived a comfortable, affluent lifestyle with her family in England.
At the age of fifteen, she was discovered by Italian fashion designer Stephan Jansen.
Jansen asked Wheeler to go to Milan and appear in his fashion show. Later that year, she was stopped in England on her way to a salon by noted fashion photographer Mario Testino.
By the age of 17, Wheeler was on the cover of French Vogue and part of a Gucci advertisement campaign. Although she continued to go to school at The King"s School, Canterbury—in Luxmoore House —Wheeler would often take off days to shoot for fashion companies, such as Calvin Klein, Prada, and The Gap.
In 1999, The Face magazine declared her the "Model of the Millennium".
Designers have continued to embrace her androgynous, waif look. In 2002, The Sunday Times named her one of Britain"s highest paid models. Wheeler"s list of clients ranges from Shiatzy Chen, Burberry to Versace.
She dated British photographer Alexi Lubomirski.
Wheeler is signed to the following agencies:
Take 2 Model Management (London, England)
Image Models (New York, United States)
TESS Management (London, England).