Jonathan Silver

Jonathan Silver (21 October 1949 – 25 September 1997) was a British entrepreneur from Bradford, Yorkshire, England; he was responsible for the restoration of Salts Mill as a thriving cultural, retail, and commercial centre. He was a pupil at Bradford Grammar School where he at first did not shine academically but enjoyed working on the school's magazine. His interest in David Hockney's talent as an artist began to blossom and after they met at Silver's father's burger bar, Hockney agreed to design a cover for the school magazine.

While a student Silver exhibited entrepreneurial skills and spent his school lunch breaks at the local auction rooms buying and selling furniture. By 1979 he owned 13 menswear shops across the country

After Silver bought it among the first events he held were performances by IOU Theatre during the first Bradford Festival. He ran the bar during the festival and came up with the idea of creating a gallery which was devoted to David Hockney. The mill has also housed a number of shops, run by the mill and by independent operators and several businesses, most notably Pace plc.

The work done by Silver in bringing Salts Mill back to life played a part in Saltaire village becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site in December 2001.

Personal life In 1972, Silver married Maggie Jackson, and they had two daughters, Zoë and Davina. He was an atheist.

Silver died from cancer at his home in Wetherby on 25 September 1997, aged 47.