City profiles

Lachlan Murdoch

“For all the dissection of the commercial and political calculus” behind Rupert Murdoch’s new TV venture, talkTV, the simple truth is that the mogul thrives on “constant dealmaking”, said the FT. Like father, like son. Lachlan Murdoch, 50, who has jockeyed for a decade to become “heir apparent” of his father’s empire, has emerged as “a serial dealmaker” – overseeing almost £7bn worth of deals in two years. Following the sale of most of 21st Century Fox to Disney, Lachlan has been pushing the slimmer “new Fox” into novel areas such as “sports betting, blockchain and streaming”. He has also beefed up News Corp’s financial output with purchases such as Investor’s Business Daily. The Murdochs are back, in “aggressive” form.

Charlie Mullins

“London legend” Charlie Mullins started his plumbing company in 1979 “with nothing more than a secondhand van and a bag of tools”, said City AM. While his hairdo appears unchanged, the fortunes of Pimlico Plumbers have advanced considerably. This week, the company – now boasting annual revenues of nearly £70m – was sold to the US “home service” giant Neighborly (owned by the private equity behemoth KKR) for an undisclosed sum; Mullins has reportedly pocketed £100m-plus. The self-styled “plumber to the rich and famous” has “never shied away from controversy”, said The Daily Telegraph. One of the first to introduce a “no jab, no job” policy for staff this year, he also recently remarked: “I’d take another pandemic over Brexit every time.”