Marcus Evans

Career

According to Companies House, Evans started his first firm, Associated Promotions, in 1983 when corporate hospitality was a relatively new market. By 1992 he had renamed his company The Hospitality Group (THG Sports Tours) and he bought into a clothing and gifts company, Castle Mills International, but within a year sold out to investor Brian Rousell. THG Sports Tours is now part of the wider Marcus Evans Group. In 1994, he paid £325,000 for a stake of just under 5 per cent in the consumer electronics group Ross, but in 1999, having spent 5 years reorganising the companies with the companies bankers eventually Evans fully arranged a rights issue with other investors who took over the company. In 2004 Evans made an unsuccessful £700+ million offer for the Daily Mirror, followed by another rejected offer of £550+ million in 2006.

2007 Rugby World Cup

In June 2007, the organisers of the Rugby World Cup failed to secure exclusive control over corporate hospitality at the event. In a ruling, the Paris Commercial Court awarded marcus evans the right to run hospitality packages without the approval of the organising committee. Marcus Evans won its case after telling the court that its packages included receptions before and after the matches, but not tickets to see them. This claim was contested by the organising committee. However despite taking Marcus Evans' THG Group to the highest appeal courts in France in 2008, THG Group won its case in the courts.

2012 Olympic Games (London)

In 2007, The Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) officially appointed the THG Sports Tours, another company owned by Marcus Evans and part of the Marcus Evans Group as its official ticketing agency for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

Subsequently, both the Greek Olympic organisation and the Maltese Olympic organisation have appointed THG Sports Tours as their agents.

Ipswich Town

In 2007 Ipswich Town Football Club announced that Marcus Evans would be buying a controlling stake in the club subject to contracts, due diligence and shareholder approval. The deal saw Evans purchase Ipswich Town's £32 million debts with Aviva (Norwich Union) and Barclays Bank. The official announcement did not stake the terms of this deal: various unsourced media reports speculated that he paid anything between 20 pence and 100 pence in the pound, without giving sources. He injected £12 million into the club in exchange for an issue of new shares, which gave him an 87.5% stake, and reduced the existing shareholders stake to 12.5%. The deal was finalised following an EGM on 17 December 2007, at which the proposal was backed by shareholders speaking for 98.9% of the stock.

When owner Marcus Evans took over the club in 2007, the club were £32m in debt –under Evan’s ownership, this figure has more than doubled (and looks set to increase further in the next accounts). Ipswich Town pays Marcus Evans around 5.4% interest on the debt. Club accounts show that £67m debt is owed to Evans and he has not converted any of it to equity.

Marcus Evans Group

Marcus Evans Group was founded in 1983, employs over 3000 staff and has around 56 offices globally. The group produces high end and sector focussed business events, summits and conferences in a number of business sectors, some major sectors include:

Marcus Evans manages the production of over 2,000 global events a year, these are niche focussed and aimed at providing key strategic business information, intelligence, best practice, and an opportunity for industry leaders to network.

The London office has recently moved from near Hyde Park into the center of the City of London, aligning it geographically with many of its financial markets clients.

Marcus Evans Television

In 2004, Evans set up marcus evans television with ex BBC Producer Mark Wilkin. The TV division created a range of "The World of ...." series. The magazine programme The World of Football enjoyed the most success and was broadcast in the UK by Sky and BBC and was licensed across most major global territories.

In 2012 World Productions became part of Marcus Evans Entertainment. World Productions have been making television drama for the last 20 years where they have produced critically acclaimed dramas including Line of Duty, The Bletchley Circle, The Fear, United, This Life, No Angels, Ballykissangel, Ultraviolet, Between The Lines, and Party Animals.

Liberal Democrats

In 2007, a Liberal Democrats spokesman confirmed that the party received significant support from Marcus Evans Ltd to establish a national phone bank to promote the party in future elections.

Political links

Guest speakers at summit events run by the Marcus Evans Group have included: George H. W. Bush, 41st US President (1989–1993); Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida (1999–2007); Bill Clinton 42nd US President, (1993–2001); Dick Cheney, 46th US Vice-President (2001–2009); The Honorable William H. Frist, MD, 18th Majority Leader, US Senate (2003–2007); Tony Blair, British Prime Minister (1997–2007) and Newt Gingrich, 58th Speaker of the US House of Representatives (1995–1999).

Tax exile status

Companies House entry for Evans' first company Associated Promotions lists his address as in Bermuda. When he was a director of Ross Group, documents filed revealed that his contract as chairman required him to spend 60 days a year in the UK. Companies House lists his fifteen firms, including his core company The Marcus Evans Group, as all being registered in Bermuda. Marcus Evans is believed to be based in Ireland where his European headquarters are located, although he still owns his two homes in Britain (Kingston upon Thames and Chelsea). Evans resigned all his UK-based directorships in 2000.

However, he does appear on the UK Electoral roll at his London address for the years 2004–2005 and 2008 and he bought the Trewarthenick Estate in Tregony, Cornwall for a reputed £9 million, which is currently being renovated.