English industrialist and businessman (1924?2002)
Arnold Weinstock, Baron Weinstock
,
Kt.
,
OMRI
,
FSS
(29 July 1924 ? 23 July 2002) was an English industrialist and businessman known for making
General Electric Company
one of Britain's most profitable companies. The
City
(London) criticized Weinstock for his financial caution but after he retired as managing director in 1996, under his successor a series of ill-judged acquisitions led to catastrophic losses.
[
citation needed
]
Early life
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]
Born in
Stoke Newington
,
[1]
Hackney, London, the son of working class Polish-Jewish immigrants Golda (
nee
Schag
) and Simon Weinstock, Arnold Weinstock was educated at the
London School of Economics
.
[2]
[3]
Career
[
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]
He was a junior administrative officer in the
Admiralty
in the period 1944?1947. In 1949, he married Netta Sobell, the daughter of industrialist
Michael Sobell
. The couple had two children, Simon (1952?1996) and Susan (b 1955).
[3]
Lady Weinstock died in 2019.
[4]
In 1954 he joined his father-in law's electronics company,
Radio & Allied Industries Ltd.
, and in 1963 orchestrated its merger with the
General Electric Company
, becoming the largest shareholder of GEC.
[5]
He served as a member of the board of directors from 1961 to 1963 and was managing director from 1963 to 1996, thence chairman Emeritus. He transformed the firm, raising its turnover from £100m in 1960 to £11bn at his retirement in 1996.
He was a director of
Rolls-Royce (1971) Ltd
from 1971 to 1973. He was a significant investor in
London Weekend Television
at its launch in 1968. He was Vice-President of the Friends of the
Ravenna Festival
(1993?1994), a trustee of the
British Museum
(1985?1996), the
Royal Philharmonic Society
and the Foundation Fund (1984?1992). He became a friend of the conductor
Riccardo Muti
, whose recordings he chose on the
Desert Island Discs
radio programme.
[6]
He was also senior trustee of the Next Century Foundation, a peace process organisation he helped establish. He established the Weinstock Fund, a charitable foundation that supports a variety of benevolent and cultural causes.
He became an Honorary Fellow of his alma mater, LSE, in 1985.
The Guardian
newspaper called him "Britain's premier post-second-world-war industrialist."
[7]
He was appointed a
Knight Bachelor
in the
1970 Birthday Honours
for services to export
[8]
and was created a
life peer
in the
1980 Birthday Honours
as
Baron Weinstock
,
of
Bowden
in the
County of Wiltshire
on 17 July 1980.
[9]
[10]
He was also a Fellow of the
Royal Statistical Society
, an Honorary Fellow of
Peterhouse, Cambridge
(from 1982), and an Honorary Bencher of
Gray's Inn
(from 1982). He became a Commander of the
Ordine al Merito
of Italy in 1991 and an Officer of the
Legion of Honour
of France in 1992. He was awarded an Honorary DSc: Salford, 1975; Aston, 1976; University of Bath, 1978; Reading, 1978; Ulster, 1987; Hon. LLD: Leeds, 1978; Wales, 1985; Keele, 1997; Hon. DTech Loughborough, 1981; DUniv Anglia Poly., 1994; Hon. DEconSc London, 1997.
Horse racing
[
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]
A member of the
Jockey Club
, Weinstock owned a number of
thoroughbred
racehorses
. He and his father-in-law,
Michael Sobell
, became owners in 1957 and were immediately successful when purchasing
London Cry
, who won the 1958
Cambridgeshire Handicap
. In 1960 they purchased the
Ballymacoll Stud
in Ireland. One of their early successful racehorses was a colt called
Reform
, who was the champion miler of 1967 and won amongst other races the
St. James's Palace Stakes
Sussex Stakes and
Champion Stakes
. Up until 1971 his horses were trained by Sir
Gordon Richards
but in 1970 with his father in law he purchased the West Ilsley stables from
Jakie Astor
, whereupon
Dick Hern
became his trainer. They owned and bred the
St Leger Stakes
runner-up Homeric. In 1974
Gaily
, a purchased filly, won the
Irish One Thousand Guineas
. Their horse Admetus won the Washington International Stakes and the
Prince of Wales's Stakes
. A few years later they bred and owned Cistus who won the Lupe Stakes,
Child Stakes
,
Nassau Stakes
and the
Prix de l'Opera
. Their horse
Troy
won the 200th
Epsom Derby
in 1979. In 1981 they sold the stables to
the Queen
.
Sun Princess
won both the Epsom Oaks and St Leger. She in turn bred for them the Champion Two Year Old of 1988
Prince of Dance
. By now the partnership's horses were being trained by Sir
Michael Stoute
, although Hern remained as a trainer up until 1997 and other trainers such as
Ian Balding
,
Peter Chapple-Hyam
and
Roger Charlton
trained at various times for them. Upon Sir Michael Sobell's death, Weinstock continued his racing activities, in partnership with his son Simon. They owned 1995 Irish Two Thousand Guineas and Champion Stakes winner
Spectrum
. On the premature death of Simon Weinstock, the racing activities continued but soon after raced under the name of the Ballymacoll Stud. He also owned
Pilsudski
, whose wins included the 1996
Grosser Preis von Baden
and
Breeders' Cup Turf
plus the 1997
Japan Cup
;
Golan
(who won the
Two Thousand Guineas Stakes
and the
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes
after Weinstock's death) and
Islington
(who won the
Musidora Stakes
, and after Weinstock's death won the Nassau Stakes, the
Yorkshire Oaks
(twice) and the
Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf
). Ballymacoll Stud continues as a stud owned by his family to this day. The Weinstock developed families of Reform (but also of Hellenic, Golan and Islington), Sun Prince (but also of Sun Princess and Spectrum), and Gaily (but also of Pilsudski) continue in the stud.
Arms
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]
Coat of arms of Arnold Weinstock
- Coronet
- A
Coronet of a Baron
- Crest
- Upon a Wreath Argent Or and Azure on a Mount Vert two Musical Pipes saltirewise Or between two Stakes entwined by Vines fructed proper and ensigned by a Crown Rayonny Gules
- Escutcheon
- Dancetty Argent and Gules on each of three Piles two issuant in chief and one in base Azure a Sun in Splendour its straight rays each tipped with Flame Or
- Supporters
- Dexter: a Male Griffin Azure beaked rayed and gorged with a Crown Tridenty and Forelegs Or; Sinister: a Horse Or gorged with a Wreath of Trefoils the stalks entwined Vert
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References and sources
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- References
- Sources
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International
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National
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People
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