Robert Maxwell Biography

Having managed to escape the concentration camps of Nazi Germany, he arrived in the UK in 1940. After serving as an officer in the British army, he found himself in Berlin after the war had ended, and it was here that he set up Pergamon Press.

As the business began to flourish, Maxwell turned his attentions to politics, standing for the Labour Party in 1964. However, a damning enquiry into Maxwell and his businesses following an American take-over bid for his company, reported:

"We regret having to conclude that, notwithstanding Mr Maxwell's acknowledged abilities and energy, he is not in our opinion a person who can be relied on to exercise proper stewardship of a publicly quoted company."

Maxwell soon bounced back from this enquiry and in 1980, he took over the British Printing Corporation and turned it into Maxwell Communications Corporation.

Having lost out to Rupert Murdoch in bids to take over ‘The Sun’ and ‘News of the World’ newspapers, he bought Mirror Group Newspapers in 1984.

In 1991, he floated MGN as a public company to raise vital funds to stop the company heading towards bankruptcy. However, in November 1991, he was reported missing from his private yacht off the Canary Islands. Despite his body being later recovered, his death is still shrouded in mystery.

Following Robert Maxwell’s death it became clear that he had taken money from his company pension fund to keep his companies afloat and boost share prices. The one-time media tycoon was vilified in the press for his business deals and questionable finances.

Campaigners for the 30,000 Mirror Group pensioners mounted a three-year campaign for compensation.

Their funds were largely recovered thanks to a £100m government payout and a £276m out-of-court settlement with City institutions and the remnants of Robert Maxwell's media group.

Maxwell was also well known as the chairman of Oxford United Football Club, saving them from bankruptcy and leading them into the top flight of English football, winning the League Cup in 1986.

However, United were to pay a heavy price for his involvement in club affairs when Maxwell's business dealings came into the public domain. Maxwell also bought into Derby County F.C. in 1987. He also attempted to buy Manchester United in 1984, but refused to pay the price that the then owner Martin Edwards had put on the club.