John James

John James CBE (25 July 1906 – 31 January 1996) was an English businessman and philanthropist.

Early life and education James was born at 96 Philip Street, Bedminster, Bristol. In 1918, James won a scholarship to study at the Merchant Venturers' Technical College (now known as Cotham School where he excelled academically.

In 1957, James bought the John Murdoch chain of 90 shops. In December 1959, he sold the business to Charles Hayward's Firth Cleveland Industrial Holdings for £5.8 million. The group was sold in 1979 to Wolseley Hughes for £23.7 million.

James was also a member of Harlech Television which made a successful bid for Independent Television's contract for Wales and West in 1968. The most notable activity funded by the Foundation was the Bristol Old Folks' Festival which ran from 1963 to 1980 and provided a week of free entertainment for anyone over 70 within the greater Bristol area for a week during May.

In 1980, James donated £300,000 to Harefield Hospital to maintain their transplant programme and £500,000 to the creation of St Peter's Hospice in Bristol. In 1985, £1 million was donated to purchase the first MRI machine for Bristol at Frenchay Hospital and three years later, a further £1 million to buy a shock wave lithotripter machine for Southmead Hospital. £1 million donations were also made to purchase an ultra sound scanner for the ante natal clinic at Southmead and towards the creation of the new Bristol Children's Hospital.

Following the cessation of the direct grant scheme in 1976, he made significant donations to all of the ex direct grant schools in Bristol to provide bursaries or assisted places to enable children of similar backgrounds to his own to have the same start in life and he also provided funding for bursaries for the existing three independent schools. He challenged the ten comprehensive schools to raise up to £100,000 each which he would match to create enrichment funds to support worthwhile activities and develop the personal qualities of every pupil.

The John James Bristol Foundation was set up in December 1983 and following his death was merged with the Dawn James Charitable Foundation in 1998. Its main areas of philanthropy follow James' wishes and are the elderly, education and health.

Honours and recognition

A five-part profile about James was published in the Bristol Evening Post under the banner 'Men of Fortune' by their London editor Don Hatwell in 1977. In 1974 his life was the subject of a BBC West programme 'The Quiet Millionaire', later shown on BBC Two as part of the 'Network' series. In 1981 he was awarded the CBE for services to charity and in 1983 awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Bristol. In 1987 he became an Honorary Member of the Society of Merchant Venturers and in 1987 became the first Honorary Member of the Guild of Guardians. In 2006 a blue plaque was erected in his memory on the walls of Windmill Hill City Farm.