Sir Jack Hayward

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Lore & Background

Hayward was born in the Whitmore Reans area of Wolverhampton, the only son of industrialist Sir Charles Hayward. He was educated at Northaw Preparatory School and Stowe School. During the Second World War, he served as a pilot officer in 671 Squadron under South East Asia Command, flying Dakota transporter aircraft. After demobilisation as a flight lieutenant, he worked in Rotary Hoes, part of the Firth Cleveland group, as an agricultural equipment salesman in South Africa. He founded the American arm of the group in New York in 1951, then relocated to the Bahamas in 1956, becoming a vice-president of the Grand Bahama Port Authority. He owned a farm in Sussex and was Laird of Dunmaglass, a 14,000-acre estate near Inverness. The Sunday Times Rich List placed him 125th richest in Britain with an estimated £160 million fortune in 2009.

In Their Own Story

In his hand was a blueprint for a cathedral of football that would have made Brighton a force to be reckoned with. He looked out toward the Goldstone, imagining the roar of thirty-five thousand fans in a new era, but the silence of the planning committee's rejection hung heavy over the site. The dream of a new home had been extinguished before a single brick was laid, leaving only the echo of ambition and the looming shadow of uncertainty for the Seagulls.

Reader's Guide

Hayward became owner and chairman of Wolverhampton Wanderers in May 1990, buying the club for £2.11 million. He spent well in excess of £70m of his personal finance on redeveloping Molineux Stadium, writing off debts, and purchasing players. His reign saw seven different managers; the club achieved one season at the highest level (2003–04). In May 2007, he sold control to Steve Morgan for a nominal £10 fee, in exchange for a conditional £30m of investment. He remained life president of Wolverhampton Wanderers and was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame. He was knighted in 1986 for charitable actions, having donated money to buy Lundy Island for the National Trust, to buy the SS Great Britain, and £500,000 to the Vulcan to the Sky fund. He funded three international racing yachts, saved the sloop Gannet, and contributed to raising the Mary Rose. He financed tours of the West Indies by the England women's cricket team and sponsored the first Women's Cricket World Cup in 1973.

Did You Know?

• Hayward was nicknamed 'Union Jack' in the Bahamas media for his British patriotism.
• He imported 10 red London buses to Freeport and installed British-style red telephone and pillar boxes.
• He was awarded £50,000 in libel damages against the Sunday Telegraph after an article accused him of being the paymaster in the alleged conspiracy to murder Norman Scott in the Thorpe affair.
• He banned non-British vehicles from his estate in Sussex and refused to drink French wine or mineral water.
• In 2011, he was sued by his daughter, elder son, and six grandchildren after they were removed as beneficiaries from trusts he set up.