Freddie Williams (businessman)
Encyclopedia
Freddie "Fearless" Williams (1942- June 21, 2008), was a Scottish businessman and bookmaker
. Born in the Ayrshire
mining village of Cumnock
, he was spared a career as a miner due to ill health at the age of 15 and went on to work for local soft drinks company Currys. Following a successful management buyout
, and subsequent sale, Williams became a millionaire.
It was at Currys that he first took to gambling. For years he was a boomaker's-runner, before taking up his first bookmaking pitch at Auchinleck Greyhound Track.
In 1974 Freddie bought his first horseracing bookmaking pitch at Ayr Racecourse
. He subsequently went on to purchase pitches at Irvine Racecourse, Hamilton Park Racecourse
, Musselburgh Racecourse
and Perth Racecourse
. He also owned a pitch at Shawfield dogs track in Glasgow.
As business grew, Freddie Williams Bookmakers grew to a chain of 7 bookmaking shops . As of June 2008, this had been slimmed down to two, one in either of his hometowns, Cumnock and Auchinleck
.
reported Williams as being a “boss from hell” .
He is also the owner of 76 St Vincent Street, an Italian restaurant in Glasgow
. He originally bought the restaurant in 2004 to deter his daughters from joining him in the betting industry .
however it was not until a relaxation of regulations governing ownership of on-site bookmakers pitches in 1998 he was able to purchase a pitch . Freddie paid £90,000 for pitch number 2 at auction, the first ever sale of a pitch at Cheltenham and only a mere four weeks after his triple-heart-bypass.
It was March 2000 when Williams shot to fame, taking mammoth bets from JP McManus amongst others at the Cheltenham Festival
. Williams laid short favourites Shannon Gale and Nick Dundee, owned by John Magnier
, close friends of JP McManus. Freddie laid one punter £80,000 on Nick Dundee at 11/8 and without budging, immediately took another £80,000 from the same punter. Williams stood to lose £220,000. Nick Dundee fell at the 3rd last fence. Channel 4
's John McCririck
subsequently nicknamed Williams, “Fearless Freddie”.
Freddie went on take several high-profile bets from JP McManus, several of which were in the public domain.
On Thursday March 16, 2006, Williams laid McManus £100,000 on Reveillez at 7-1 in the first race of the Festival. It won. In the final race of the day McManus placed £5000 each-way on 50-1 outsider Kadoun in at the Cheltenham Festival. It won. Williams lost over £1,000,000 to McManus that day – and all whilst filming a documentary for ITV
.
That night, Williams and daughter Julie were subject to an armed robbery as they travelled back to their hotel from Cheltenham. The robbers fled with an estimated £70,000. Williams returned to Cheltenham the following year.
In March 2008 he returned to the Festival accompanied by his own horse Donaldson. A rising public profile saw Williams undertake the writing of a Festival column for the Daily Record
.nfgn
to Ayr Racecourse
the previous day (Friday) in order to attend both race meetings. The day of his death he had pitched up at Ayr Racecourse for what was to be the final time, before going on to Shawfield in the evening. Williams died shortly after his return home that night.
Bookmaker
A bookmaker, or bookie, is an organization or a person that takes bets on sporting and other events at agreed upon odds.- Range of events :...
. Born in the Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
mining village of Cumnock
Cumnock
Cumnock is a town in East Ayrshire, Scotland. The town sits at the confluence of the Glaisnock Water and the Lugar Water...
, he was spared a career as a miner due to ill health at the age of 15 and went on to work for local soft drinks company Currys. Following a successful management buyout
Management buyout
A management buyout is a form of acquisition where a company's existing managers acquire a large part or all of the company.- Overview :Management buyouts are similar in all major legal aspects to any other acquisition of a company...
, and subsequent sale, Williams became a millionaire.
It was at Currys that he first took to gambling. For years he was a boomaker's-runner, before taking up his first bookmaking pitch at Auchinleck Greyhound Track.
In 1974 Freddie bought his first horseracing bookmaking pitch at Ayr Racecourse
Ayr Racecourse
Ayr Racecourse at Whitletts Road, Ayr, Scotland, was opened on 1907. The track is a left-handed, oval track, thirteen furlongs in circumference, with a straight run-in of half a mile. There are courses for flat and for National Hunt racing...
. He subsequently went on to purchase pitches at Irvine Racecourse, Hamilton Park Racecourse
Hamilton Park Racecourse
Hamilton Park Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue in Hamilton, Scotland to the south of Glasgow. It is a flat racing venue, with a season which runs from May to September....
, Musselburgh Racecourse
Musselburgh Racecourse
Musselburgh Racecourse, known until the 1990s as Edinburgh Racecourse, is a horse racing venue located in the Millhill area of Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, close to the River Esk....
and Perth Racecourse
Perth Racecourse
Perth Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue adjacent to the ancient Scone Palace, near Perth, Scotland.Perth racecourse opened in 1908 and is the northernmost track in Britain....
. He also owned a pitch at Shawfield dogs track in Glasgow.
As business grew, Freddie Williams Bookmakers grew to a chain of 7 bookmaking shops . As of June 2008, this had been slimmed down to two, one in either of his hometowns, Cumnock and Auchinleck
Auchinleck
Auchinleck ; is a village five miles south-east of Mauchline, and a couple of miles north-west of Cumnock in East Ayrshire, Scotland.Near the village is Auchinleck House, past home of the lawyer, diarist and biographer James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck.Auchinleck has much been associated...
.
Business Interests
Williams' interests in the soft drinks market continued following the termination of his interests in Currys. In 1992 he set up Caledonian Bottlers in Netherthird, Cumnock . A successful operation, Caledonian bottle premium branded drinks such as Smirnoff Ice. At one time Williams also operated Caledonian Clear, his own premium bottled water brand from the same factory. In April 2002, the Sunday MailSunday Mail (Scotland)
The Sunday Mail is a Scottish tabloid newspaper published every Sunday. It is the sister paper of the Daily Record and is owned by Trinity Mirror and as such has a left-wing outlook which in turn tends to guide Scottish political debate in that direction.The Sunday Mail is read by over one million...
reported Williams as being a “boss from hell” .
He is also the owner of 76 St Vincent Street, an Italian restaurant in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. He originally bought the restaurant in 2004 to deter his daughters from joining him in the betting industry .
Ill Health
In 1998 Freddie suffered a massive heart attack and later underwent a triple-heart bypass.Cheltenham
In 1976 Freddie first put his name down for a bookmaking pitch at Cheltenham RacecourseCheltenham Racecourse
Cheltenham Racecourse is a racecourse for horse racing events, located at Prestbury Park, in the suburban village of Prestbury on the outskirts of the English town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire...
however it was not until a relaxation of regulations governing ownership of on-site bookmakers pitches in 1998 he was able to purchase a pitch . Freddie paid £90,000 for pitch number 2 at auction, the first ever sale of a pitch at Cheltenham and only a mere four weeks after his triple-heart-bypass.
It was March 2000 when Williams shot to fame, taking mammoth bets from JP McManus amongst others at the Cheltenham Festival
Cheltenham Festival
The Cheltenham Festival is one of the most prestigious meetings in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, and has race prize money second only to the Grand National...
. Williams laid short favourites Shannon Gale and Nick Dundee, owned by John Magnier
John Magnier
John Magnier is Ireland's leading thoroughbred stud owner and has extensive business interests outside of the horse breeding industry....
, close friends of JP McManus. Freddie laid one punter £80,000 on Nick Dundee at 11/8 and without budging, immediately took another £80,000 from the same punter. Williams stood to lose £220,000. Nick Dundee fell at the 3rd last fence. Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
's John McCririck
John McCririck
John McCririck is an English television horse racing pundit. He is notable not only for his racing opinions but also for his old-fashioned style of dress and mannerisms...
subsequently nicknamed Williams, “Fearless Freddie”.
Freddie went on take several high-profile bets from JP McManus, several of which were in the public domain.
On Thursday March 16, 2006, Williams laid McManus £100,000 on Reveillez at 7-1 in the first race of the Festival. It won. In the final race of the day McManus placed £5000 each-way on 50-1 outsider Kadoun in at the Cheltenham Festival. It won. Williams lost over £1,000,000 to McManus that day – and all whilst filming a documentary for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
.
That night, Williams and daughter Julie were subject to an armed robbery as they travelled back to their hotel from Cheltenham. The robbers fled with an estimated £70,000. Williams returned to Cheltenham the following year.
In March 2008 he returned to the Festival accompanied by his own horse Donaldson. A rising public profile saw Williams undertake the writing of a Festival column for the Daily Record
Daily Record (Scotland)
The Daily Record is a Scottish tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. It had been the best-selling daily paper in Scotland for many years with a paid circulation in August 2011 of 307,794 . It is now outsold by its arch-rival the Scottish Sun which in September 2010 had a circulation of 339,586 in...
.nfgn
Family
In 1966 Freddie married Sheila, but they separated around 1997-1998. Freddie and Sheila had two daughters, Julie and Shirley. In March 2006, Freddie and Sheila divorced for a reputed £1,000,000 settlement. Sheila also got to keep the modest family home in Holmhead, Cumnock .Death
On June 21, 2008, Freddie Willams died having suffered a major heart attack at his home near Cumnock. Typical of Williams working attitude, his death followed a hectic start to the weekend which saw him take a helicopter from Musselburgh RacecourseMusselburgh Racecourse
Musselburgh Racecourse, known until the 1990s as Edinburgh Racecourse, is a horse racing venue located in the Millhill area of Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, close to the River Esk....
to Ayr Racecourse
Ayr Racecourse
Ayr Racecourse at Whitletts Road, Ayr, Scotland, was opened on 1907. The track is a left-handed, oval track, thirteen furlongs in circumference, with a straight run-in of half a mile. There are courses for flat and for National Hunt racing...
the previous day (Friday) in order to attend both race meetings. The day of his death he had pitched up at Ayr Racecourse for what was to be the final time, before going on to Shawfield in the evening. Williams died shortly after his return home that night.