Ian Maxwell

Early life and education

Maxwell is the son of Elisabeth (née Meynard) and Robert Maxwell, the media mogul, and brother of Kevin Maxwell. His father was Jewish and his mother a French Protestant. Ian Maxwell was educated at Summer Fields School, Marlborough College and Oxford University. His first involvement in his father's business was at Pergamon Press from 1978 to 1983. After a short time at the Prince's Charitable Trust, he rejoined the Maxwell business, this time at British Printing and Communications Corporation (later renamed Maxwell Communications Corporation).

Mirror Group

Ian Maxwell was appointed chairman of Mirror Group Newspapers plc (MGN) following the death of his father on 5 November 1991. For the next month the group was the subject of speculation regarding its financial position. On 3 December 1991, Ian Maxwell and his brother Kevin Maxwell resigned from the board of Maxwell Communication Corporation and nine hours later resigned from MGN, following the disclosure that "many million" of pounds had been transferred from the Mirror Group pension fund to Robert Maxwell's private companies apparently without due authority. MGN announced "Because of increasing conflicts of interest, Ian Maxwell, chairman and publisher of MGN, Kevin Maxwell, and Michael Stoney, who has a major management involvement in the Maxwell private companies, have today resigned from the board of MGN and its subsidiaries and have also ceased their executive duties in the MGN Group."

He has been involved with Maximov publications and MicMacMusic Ltd in recent years.

Personal life

Maxwell has been married twice. In 1991, he married television producer Laura Plumb. They divorced in 1996. In 1999, he married Tara Dudley Smith, the daughter of Jockey Club steward Susan Gilmour. They separated in 2009 and are believed to have divorced. Tara lives with their son in a ‘modest flat’ in Olympia.