Duncan Bannatyne OBE
Born in 1949 in the town of Clydebank, Duncan was raised in relatively modest circumstances. He was told by his mother that she could not afford to buy him a bicycle, so he asked the local newsagents if he could start a paper round; told he would need a list of 100 potential customers, he painstakingly knocked on many doors and eventually drew up a list of 100 names and addresses. He got the job, bought a bike and never looked back!
He has since branched into Health Clubs, with the popular Bannatyne’s Health Clubs chain, and also bars, hotels and property. He has acquired 26 Health Clubs from Hilton Hotels back in August 2006, which made them the largest independent chain of Health Clubs in the United Kingdom. In October 2008, in defiance of the credit, crunch he opened the £12,000,000 Bannatyne Spa Hotel in Hastings and also revamped the spa chain.
Duncan was honoured with the Order of the British Empire for his contribution to charity and he supports many good causes, especially for children. He is heavily involved with Comic Relief and UNICEF, and a passionate anti-smoking campaigner.
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