Evangelical Christian and Holy Trinity Brompton member Sir Paul Marshall says he is "delighted" to have bought the world’s oldest current affairs magazine, The Spectator, for £100 million.
The hedge fund tycoon and GB News investor outbid 20 other hopefuls to buy the right-leaning political title, first published in 1828.
Marshall, who has been described as one of the UK’s most generous philanthropists, is reported to have given over £5.5million a month to charity in 2023 according to the Sunday Times Giving List.
Sir Paul, owner of online magazine UnHerd, donated £100,000 to the official Brexit campaign, Vote Leave in 2016 and has reportedly donated a further £500,000 to the Conservative Party.
Marshall is also a benefactor of the St Paul’s Theological Centre, St Mellitus Training College, the Centre for Cultural Witness based at Lambeth Palace, and the Church Revitalisation Trust.
He is a founder trustee of children’s charity Ark, and former chairman of Ark Schools. He is also the father of former Mumford & Sons banjo player, Winston Marshall.
Mumford and Sons are well-known for their Bible-infused lyrics. The band's lead singer, Marcus Mumford, is the son of John and Eleanor Mumford, who founded the Vineyard Church in the UK and Ireland.
The Spectator and Telegraph Media Group (TMG) were both owned by the billionaire Barclay family until last year when the businesses were put up for sale to help pay off the family’s debts to Lloyds Bank.
They were acquired by Abu-Dhabi-backed media consortium RedBird IMI, through a £600 million call option.
However, in March, the UK Government had RedBird IMI relist the media assets, introducing legislation that prevents foreign states from owning UK newspaper companies.
After the deal was announced, Spectator chairman and journalist Andrew Neil resigned with immediate effect, having previously expressed concerns that hedge fund ownership of news outlets posed a conflict of interest.
Neil said it was his "greatest regret" not to have been able to choose a new owner for the magazine.
