Dr Stewart Cowley
I left school at 16 years old and worked for British Steel in the North East of England as an apprentice. I went to night school receiving a scholarship to Manchester University to read metallurgy.
From there I took a doctorate at Oxford University. You could say I went from the shop floor to high table in just 8 years. As journeys go – it was interesting.
But the strangeness didn’t stop there. From Oxford I went to work on Wall Street and for the past 25 years have worked in fund management and have become one of the leading managers in the world in my field.
I write for The New Statesman, Citywire and Sunday Telegraph amongst others whilst also appearing on the BBC, SKY and CNBC commentating on economics and markets.
I am also a musician – I play the double bass in London orchestras and have even played in a pop band in the Albert Hall. I made a short but disastrous appearance on Masterchef but more of that another time…