David Thompson is the co-founder of Hillsdown Holdings

Premier Foods

Premier Foods plc is a British food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans, Hertfordshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...

, one of the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

's largest food businesses.

Career

Having initially worked as a meat trader at Smithfield Market David Thompson helped his father to float his meat wholesaling business in 1966. He co-founded Hillsdown Holdings

Premier Foods

Premier Foods plc is a British food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans, Hertfordshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...

 in 1975 and then, in 1989, sold his stake in the business for £500m.

He acquired the Cheveley Park Stud near Newmarket: famous horses coming from Cheveley include Party Politics, the 1992 Grand National

Grand National

The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...

 winner, owned by Patricia, his wife. He was also an investor in Queens Park Rangers Football Club. David Thompson lives in East Anglia

East Anglia

East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...

.