You May Never See Us Again

by Jane Martinson

The untold story of post-war Britain. Told through the lives of the two men who helped shape it: Sir David Barclay and Sir Frederick Barclay.
You May Never See Us Again is the only definitive story of David and Frederick Barclay - commonly known as the Barclay brothers. Born poor, these enigmatic twins built one of the biggest fortunes in Britain together from scratch and spent six decades at the epicentre of British business, media and politics. Their empire, said to be worth £7bn at its height, included Littlewoods, the Ritz Hotel, The Daily Telegraph and the channel island of Brecqhou. They were major advocates for Brexit and well-connected with influential politicians including Margaret Thatcher, Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage.
And yet despite their fortune and influence, their fiercely guarded desire for privacy has meant that their story remained largely unknown - until a very public family dispute pitched Barclay against Barclay in the High Court.
Journalist Jane Martinson unravels the fascinating story of these once inseparable billionaire brothers. Through their lives she offers compelling insights into post-war Britain, from the conditions that enabled their way of doing business to thrive through to the tightly enmeshed webs of influence between capitalism, politics and the media that shape Britain today.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published October 19, 2023

Reviews

[Ugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough account of how two publicity-avoiding brothers amassed a fortune they encouraged be seen as amounting to about £7bn, which then collapsed to a much-reduced but unknowable sum under the weight of debt and family in-fighting. Leverage lifted them up, and then nests of off-shore holding companies kept them aloft for years, before the great financial crash, divorce and squabbles brought them back down. The saga continues to unfold with many debts unpaid and much money disappeared. Martinson does as good a job as seems possible in setting it all out, given that teams of lawyers and bankers struggled with it all for years. A very solid, illuminating book.

[Sharen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exploring the world of self-made billionaires who may - or may not - have scruples. The degree of corruption in the business world ought not to come as a surprise to the rest of us, yet the audacity of their carelessness of other people's lives in pursuit of their own fortunes is disheartening nonetheless. Gratitude to Jane Martinson for her research in bringing to light the machinations of the profiteers in business, journalism and government.

[Adrian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this because I overheard someone talking about the brothers while sailing past Brecquou on the way to Sark, and it piqued my interest. The author has done a great job of finding out all she could, although that is mostly about finances and we’ll never know the interesting bit - what was going on in their heads

[Gareth Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent account of the businesses and life of secretive Barclay brothers.

[Stacey Bookerworm · Rating 2 out of 5]

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