Maxwell Joseph

Educated at Pitman's Business School,^[1] Joseph left school in 1926 to work in an estate agent's office.^[2] He lost his job and founded his own estate agent's business in 1930^[3] before serving as a lance corporal in the Royal Engineers during the Second World War.^[1]

He bought the Mandeville Hotel in London shortly after the War and, after buying up other hotels, built Grand Hotels (Mayfair) Ltd and then Grand Metropolitan plc into a large international conglomerate before being knighted in 1981.^[3] In July 1982 he announced his intention to retire from the chairmanship the following March^[4] but died before his scheduled retirement date.^[1]

He lived at Melksham Court in the Cotswolds.^[5]