Sir Sidney Gordon (20 August 1917 – 11 April 2007) was a businessman in

colonial Hong Kong Hong Kong was a colony and later a dependent territory of the British Empire from 1841 to 1997, apart from a period of occupation under the Japanese Empire from 1941 to 1945 during the Pacific War. The colonial period began with the British ...

from 1956 until his death in 2007.

Life in Scotland

Sidney Samuel Gordon was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and was the son of the managing director of

British Lion Films British Lion Films is a film production and distribution company active under several forms since 1919. Originally known as British Lion Film Corporation Ltd, it entered receivership on 1 June 1954. From 29 January 1955 to 1976, the company was kn ...

in Scotland. In his early life he suffered from chronic ill health and was diagnosed with

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant dull ache. Other sy ...

as a child. This tendency towards sickness meant that Sidney, unlike his brother Lesley, never saw action during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. However, due to the experience he had accumulated in the Scottish

accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...

industry he was asked to work in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

's biggest munitions factory at Ardeer in Ayrshire. It was while working as an accountant here that Sidney was offered a position with Lowe, Bingham and Thomsons (which later became Lowe, Bingham and Mathews, and later

PricewaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...

) in Hong Kong. Sidney accepted this position in 1947, and by 1956 had become a senior partner at the firm. He died on 11 April 2007, aged 89, in

Hong Kong Adventist Hospital – Stubbs Road Hong Kong Adventist Hospital – Stubbs Road () is one of two Seventh-day Adventist hospitals in Hong Kong, the other being Hong Kong Adventist Hospital – Tsuen Wan. It is a private hospital, and is located on Stubbs Road, on Hong Kong Islan ...

Happy Valley, Hong Kong Happy Valley () is an upper-income residential area in Hong Kong, located on Hong Kong Island. The area is bordered by Caroline Hill to the east, Jardine's Lookout to the south, Morrison Hill to the west, and Causeway Bay to the north. Administ ...

Life in Hong Kong

As a senior partner in Lowe, Bingham and Matthews, Gordon became the primary accountant to Sir Elly Kadoorie and Sons, the corporate major

shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal own ...

in such companies as Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels group, China Light and Power, and Tai Ping Carpets. Through this he developed a deep friendship with Lord Kadoorie and the

Kadoorie family The Kadoorie family or "Khedouri" ( he, כדורי, ar, خضوري) are a wealthy Hong Kong-based family, originally Mizrahi Jews from Baghdad, Iraq. From the mid-18th century they were established in Mumbai, British Raj India becoming one of t ...

, and when he left Lowe Bingham and Matthews, he joined the Board of Directors of Sir Elly Kadoorie and Sons, eventually becoming the group's chairman. Sidney Gordon was appointed a 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 1967 and was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

ed in 1972 for services to

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

. He also received the

Grand Bauhinia Medal The Grand Bauhinia Medal () is the highest award under the Hong Kong honours and awards system; it is to recognise the selected person's lifelong and highly significant contribution to the well-being of Hong Kong. The awardee is entitled to the ...

in 1999, the highest award available to the Hong Kong government.

Positions held

References

obituary at news.scotsman.comwww.telegraph.co.uk for May 11, 2007
1917 births 2007 deaths Recipients of the Grand Bauhinia Medal 20th-century Scottish businesspeople Knights Bachelor Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong Members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong British emigrants to Hong Kong {{HongKong-bio-stub