David Brian Thompson (4 April 1936 – 29 December 2020) was the co-founder of

Hillsdown Holdings Premier Foods plc is a British food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans, Hertfordshire. The group owns many well-known brands, including Mr Kipling, Ambrosia, Bird's Custard, Angel Delight, Homepride cooking sauces, Lyons, Sharwood's, Loyd ...

, one of the United Kingdom's largest food businesses.

Career

Having initially worked as a meat trader at Smithfield Market, David Thompson helped his father to float his meat wholesaling business in 1966. He co-founded

in 1975 and then, in 1989, sold his stake in the business for £500m. He acquired the

Cheveley Park Stud Cheveley Park Stud is a thoroughbred racehorse ownership and breeding operation in Newmarket, Suffolk, UK, which has bred and owned many notable horses. It is the oldest stud in Newmarket, the "capital" of British racing, with evidence of ...

near Newmarket: famous horses coming from Cheveley include ''Party Politics'', the 1992

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap st ...

winner, owned by Patricia, his wife. He was also an investor in Queens Park Rangers Football Club. David Thompson lived in

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nor ...

Family

David Thompson was married to Patricia Thompson and together they had one son, Richard Thompson, and two daughters. Together with his wife, Thompson was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the

2020 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours for 2020 are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded ...

for services to charity.

References

1936 births 2021 deaths English businesspeople Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Deaths from kidney failure {{UK-business-bio-1930s-stub