TWG

Prior to its flotation, The Wireless Group was essentially a consortium of News International, Liberty Inc and some others put together by Kelvin MacKenzie (ex-editor of The Sun) to invest in radio stations.

Following the purchase of the then Talk Radio in November 1998, the group grew rapidly with two acquisitions in 1999 so that by January 2000 it operated ~16 local radio stations together with a national station, talkSPORT.

In May 2000, the Group obtained a full listing on the London Stock Exchange and raised ~£40M before expenses. The existing bank facilities were also replaced with a £40m term loan from Barclays.

James Haddock was brought in to manage the flotation process and then acted as Group Finance Director during and after the float