Meet the Stratford boy with a Mensa score higher than both Einstein and Stephen Hawking
YOU might expect one of the cleverest kids in Britain to be a little precocious, but that’s not the case for one Stratford genius.
Julien Deleau-Lees, 12, has a Mensa score of 162, higher than both Einstein and Stephen Hawking with 160 each.
Meeting him in his town centre home with his mum Jane, Julien comes across as charmingly normal and happy to chat.
“I always really liked maths and physics, specifically space, but I also like games a lot,” says Julien, who lists his favourite video games as Minecraft and Rocket League.
“It’s not intellectual, I just find them entertaining and fun, especially when you play with friends,” he says.
After spending his early years in France, Julien went to St Andrew’s Primary in Shottery.
His talent for maths often left him way ahead of his peers, and so Jane took the decision to put him in private education, where the resources meant he could be better challenged.
After Stratford Prep, he went to The Croft and is now in Year 8 at King Edward VI School, after acing the 11+.
“KES is great,” continues Julien. “I have a competition with my friend to see who can get the highest maths score. Last time I got 20/20, but so did he. So the battle is on for the next test.”
Julien knows what he enjoys but has yet to exactly map out his future.
“I think I would like to do astrophysics and study space and physics. I like quantum physics – black holes are interesting,” he says.
Proud mum Jane says Julien has always shown a particular aptitude for maths.
“He built his own gaming computer from scratch when he was ten just using YouTube tutorials,” she adds in amazement.
Humbly, Jane says Julien gets his way with numbers from his dad, Damien, who lives in France, and that his two older brothers have also been a big influence.
“I am more creative so it doesn’t come from me. His dad’s side of the family are all surgeons, so very smart,” explains Jane. “Growing up with brothers – Andre, 27, and Francois, 25 – has also had a hugely positive effect. They have taught him a lot, as did his grandfather, my dad, who is very intelligent and who Ju was very close to.”
Most people stress over exams, but Julien loves the challenge. He had wanted to sit the Mensa test since he was around eight, but had to wait until he was ten, and old enough.
Jane explains: “We went along to Birmingham and he sat the exam. I thought it’s extraordinary that a child wants to do this, but he enjoys exams so I was happy to take him. He got the highest score possible for a child, 162.”
Julien adds: “I was curious what score I would get, I was really pleased.”
Mensa favours non-verbal problem-solving puzzles where you have to spot what the next pattern would be in a logical sequence.
While many struggle with such brain-bending conundrums, Julien finds it relatively easy.
“I look for things that are similar across rows and columns – and consider the possibilities. If you see a similarity that’s quite often where the solution is.”
And, no, we’re none the wiser with that info either! We’ll leave the brainy stuff to Julien.