Preston North End owner Trevor Hemmings dies at 86

Entrepreneur Trevor Hemmings, who owned Preston North End FC, has died at the age of 86.

Trevor was born in London but raised in Leyland, leaving school at 15 to become a bricklayer’s apprentice. He made his money in the leisure and tourism sector, with previous interests including Pontins holiday parks, Blackpool Tower and Winter Gardens.

In later years he was the owner of Northern Trust, which built up a vast portfolio of industrial, trade and office parks across the UK.

He was a director of Preston North End in the 1970s and saved the club from folding in 2010 by acquiring a 51 per cent stake after it had been served a winding up petition by HMRC.

He was also known for his love of racing, owning more than 100 horses and winning the Grand National with Hedgehunter in 2005, Ballabriggs in 2011 and Many Clouds in 2015.

In the Sunday Times Rich List in 2020, his fortune was reported as £1.025bn. He funded a number of philanthropic projects in and around Preston, and his work was recognised with the Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in 2011 for his work as vice-president of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers.

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