Matthew Harding
Encyclopedia
Matthew Harding was a British
businessman, vice-chairman of Chelsea
football
club and a major financial supporter of New Labour (the Labour Party
).
, West Sussex
, the son of Paul Harding, an insurance executive. He attended Abingdon School
in Oxfordshire
, but did not enjoy the school ethos. He did however return to the school just weeks before his death to speak to a small group of sixth formers about his road to success. He left school with a single 'A' Level in Latin and went to London
.
and it was in the insurance
industry that he made his fortune, starting out by making the tea
and going on to be a director. By 1980 he had acquired a 32% stake
in the company, becoming a millionaire
and one of Britain's 100 richest men.
' call for new investment in the club in 1994 and invested £26.5m and joined the board. However, his time there was marked by frequent clashes with Bates, club chairman and majority shareholder
, a man in many respects Harding's antithesis, over the new direction to be taken by the club. Ken Bates eventually banned Harding from the Chelsea boardroom and effectively limited his input and influence over the club. The dispute between Bates and Harding was continual and was only stopped after his death in 1996. However Bates would not let it rest, by causing more controversy which he was well known for now, by upsetting many Chelsea fans, friends and family of Harding in 1997 by calling him a vile man, just a year after his premature death.
accident in 1996, after flying back from a Chelsea match away to Bolton Wanderers
, along with the pilot and three passengers, including the journalist John Bauldie
and Raymond Deane.
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...
businessman, vice-chairman of Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
club and a major financial supporter of New Labour (the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
).
Early years
Harding was born in Haywards HeathHaywards Heath
-Climate:Haywards Heath experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Rail:Haywards Heath railway station is a major station on the Brighton Main Line...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, the son of Paul Harding, an insurance executive. He attended Abingdon School
Abingdon School
Abingdon School is a British day and boarding independent school for boys situated in Abingdon, Oxfordshire , previously known as Roysse's School. In 1998 a formal merger took place between Abingdon School and Josca's, a preparatory school four miles to the west at Frilford...
in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, but did not enjoy the school ethos. He did however return to the school just weeks before his death to speak to a small group of sixth formers about his road to success. He left school with a single 'A' Level in Latin and went to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Making his fortune
Through his father's friendship with Ted Benfield, he joined the insurance brokers Benfield, Lovick & ReesBenfield Group
Benfield Group is a leading independent reinsurance and risk intermediary. Customers include most of the world's major insurance and reinsurance companies as well as government entities and global corporations...
and it was in the insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
industry that he made his fortune, starting out by making the tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
and going on to be a director. By 1980 he had acquired a 32% stake
Stake
Stake may refer to:* @stake, a computer services company* Equity stake, a share or interest in a business or investment* "Stake", a tent peg* Stake -Military:* Sudis , a fortification carried by Roman legionaries...
in the company, becoming a millionaire
Millionaire
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account...
and one of Britain's 100 richest men.
Fortune
The inheritance will be divided according to instructions left with two executors, Mark Killick and Margaret Nugent. Their instructions are to include provision for his twin sons by his wife Ruth and for Ella, his daughter by girlfriend Vicky Jaramillo. In the will Mr Harding, aged 42 at the time of his death, also names Jessica, Ms Jaramillo's daughter from a previous relationship. The shareholders in his former business, The Benfield Group, will also benefit. Mr Harding organised a successful management buy-out of the company in 1988. The will was witnessed by England football coach, Glenn Hoddle and by a London taxi driver called Grant Davis.Chelsea FC
A lifelong Chelsea fan, Harding responded to Chelsea chairman Ken BatesKen Bates
Kenneth William Bates is a British businessman and football executive. The current chairman and now owner of Leeds United AFC, Bates was previously chairman and majority shareholder of Chelsea FC from 1982 until 2003....
' call for new investment in the club in 1994 and invested £26.5m and joined the board. However, his time there was marked by frequent clashes with Bates, club chairman and majority shareholder
Shareholder
A shareholder or stockholder is an individual or institution that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a public or private corporation. Shareholders own the stock, but not the corporation itself ....
, a man in many respects Harding's antithesis, over the new direction to be taken by the club. Ken Bates eventually banned Harding from the Chelsea boardroom and effectively limited his input and influence over the club. The dispute between Bates and Harding was continual and was only stopped after his death in 1996. However Bates would not let it rest, by causing more controversy which he was well known for now, by upsetting many Chelsea fans, friends and family of Harding in 1997 by calling him a vile man, just a year after his premature death.
Personal Life
Mr. Harding had 4 children with wife Ruth, and later on a daughter named Ella with Ecuadorian ex-waitress girlfriend, Vicky Jaramillo.Death
Harding died in a helicopterHelicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
accident in 1996, after flying back from a Chelsea match away to Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers F.C.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the area of Horwich in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester. They began their current spell in the Premier League in 2001....
, along with the pilot and three passengers, including the journalist John Bauldie
John Bauldie
John Bauldie was a British journalist, noted as one of the foremost experts on the work of Bob Dylan. He was the editor of the Dylan fanzine The Telegraph, and was also on the launch staff of Q magazine. He died in a helicopter crash with the businessman Matthew Harding.- External links :* *...
and Raymond Deane.
Sources
- Matthew Harding: Pursuing the Dream by Alyson RuddAlyson RuddAlyson Rudd is a writer with The Times who writes about sport, mainly football, and literature in the book club section. She was born in Liverpool in 1963 and grew up in rural Lancashire. She is a graduate of the London School of Economics but began her career in fashion before becoming a...
Mainstream Publishing (16 Oct 1997) ISBN 1851589570 - A Question of Honour by Lord Michael Levy Simon & Schuster (12 May 2008) ISBN 1847373151