Gyles Brandreth: My First Million

Gyles Brandreth, 61, is a reporter on BBC1’s The One Show, and a regular on Radio 4’s Just a Minute. His career has included serving as MP for Chester and Lord Commissioner of the Treasury in John Major’s government to starring in Zipp!, his own musical in the West End.

His latest book, published in October, is Something Sensational to Read in the Train, the diary of his life.

Brandreth lives with his wife Michele in Barnes, southwest London. They have three adult children.

Did you think you would get to where you are?

Oh gosh! The answer to that question is: where am I? I think I’m exactly where I was when I began! In my adult life, I have continued doing the same sort of things as I did in my teens.

I edited the school magazine, I acted in school plays, I was a candidate in the school’s mock general election. There hasn’t been much progress but I don’t complain. I was happy then and I am happy now.

When you realised that you had made your first million, were you tempted to slow down?

I cannot really answer that. I don’t know what I earn each year. Genuinely. Michele collects the money and tells me if I’ve done better or worse than the previous year. I am comfortably off because I want for nothing. I have a detached house in Barnes. We bought it 25 years ago, so it has gone up hugely in value, but I have no idea of its exact worth.

What is the secret of your success?

If I knew the secret, I would have been rather more successful! The one thing I have been blessed with is energy, which every successful person I’ve known has had.

Recently, I came across the three words that may contain the secret of success. They are so helpful that a friend has embroidered them on a cushion for me: “Don’t dabble, focus”. I think that’s true, particularly in business.

What is your basic business philosophy?

Do whatever you do properly. I have done a variety of work so I must say I might as look like somebody who has dabbled and not focused, but I try to pay attention to detail and follow things through.

On re-reading my diary, I realised how many opportunities I have missed. When I was 18 and he was 17, Richard Branson suggested we go into business together. We knew each other when we were at school. I didn’t think he was going anywhere!

Do you want to carry on till you drop?

Yes. In fact, I believe that if I did stop, I would drop.
I like to work. It keeps me out of mischief. I was recording Just a Minute yesterday with Nicholas Parsons and he is 86 – a good role model.

Have you had time for personal financial planning?

No, but my wife has – and I am relying on her. One reason why I am able to do such a variety of work is that I leave everything to Michele on the financial side. I am a totally serviced human being. I don’t even have a chequebook.

My view is that, provided you have enough to keep dry and warm and to buy the occasional cappuccino, you shouldn’t complain.

What was your most prudent investment?

Probably collecting old teddy bears. About five years ago, we sold a 1903 Steiff bear for £10,000. We had bought him for just a few pounds in a flea market in the Cotswolds in the mid-1980s.

My wife and I founded the Teddy Bear Museum in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1988. In 2006, we donated the collection to the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon, so they have 1,000 bears – some priceless – including the original Fozzie Bear, created by Jim Henson, and a Paddington Bear given to me by Michael Bond.

Have you made any pension provision?

We both have a couple of pensions, which my wife got us to take out when we were in our 20s. And I will get a modest parliamentary pension because of my five years as an MP.

The one thing I learnt listening to the financial worries of my older constituents as an MP is, where possible, not to rely on one investment only in later life. If you can, manage a mix: give yourself income from a pension, property, and the stock market.

Have you taken steps to pass on your wealth?

Yes, Michele keeps our wills up to date and changes them every few years. My mother is 95 so, who knows, I may keep going for another 35 years. My children will have to fend them for themselves – and they do.

What is your commitment to charity?

I am a vice-president, and was chairman, of the National Playing Fields Association, which is the National Trust of recreational space. It looks after playgrounds and playing fields, and protects them from being developed. As a charity stunt for them in the 1990s, I made the longest continuous after-dinner speech, lasting 12 and a half hours.

Do you allow yourself the odd indulgence?

My whole life is an odd indulgence! I don’t buy clothes, I drive a Mercedes but I don’t know what type it is, I go to the theatre and I like to buy cappuccinos. But that’s about it. I don’t drink.

Picasso or Art Deco as an investment?

I would see art as a better investment than furniture, but I don’t think of possessions as investments. I sometimes buy pictures by friends – but for pleasure, not profit.

What is your money-saving tip in the recession?

When going out for the day, take sandwiches and a flask. It’s amazing how the cost of several coffees and a snack can add up.