GRANADA boss Gerry Robinson, once famously dubbed an "ignorant upstart caterer" by comedian John Cleese, has proved his business acumen again by winning the takeover battle for the Forte hotel and restaurant empire.
Donegal born chief executive Mr Robinson (47) has added Britain's biggest hotels firm to a Granada that already operates two regional television stations and a string of high street television rental stores.
Robinson, an accountant by training, refuses to submit himself to the kind of punishing schedule that most top executives impose on themselves.
He limits himself to a nine hour day and often slips away on Fridays to play a round of golf with his eldest son.
Born in Donegal town, Robinson was the ninth of the 10 children of a carpenter. His no frills approach to business has won him the admiration of city institutions for his ruthless cost cutting.
A genial and soft spoken man, Robinson stamped his authority on Granada after his appointment in 1991, provoking Cleese's ire with the removal of Granada television chairman David Plowright.
Cleese and Robinson patched things up over lunch and are now said to be on good terms.
Robinson, who will also take over as executive chairman in April when Alex Bernstein retires, has presided over a recovery at Granada whose profits had collapsed from £164 million to £57 million the year before his arrival.
Pre tax profit in the 1995 increased by almost a third to £351 million according to figures released by Granada on the day they made their offer for Forte.
Robinson was educated at a seminary in northern England but began his career at the age of 18 in the cost office of the Lesney toy car factory in east London.
He obtained his professional qualifications while with Lesney and had become chief management accountant before he quit the company in 1974.
The prospect of a company car lured him away to motor dealer Lex, where he stayed for six years when he missed out on promotion on several occasions.
He moved to Grand Metropolitan in 1980, initially as finance director of its British Coca Cola business.
He became chief executive of Grand Metropolitan's contract services division and in 1987 led a record management buy out with the £163 million purchase of the division, subsequently renamed the Compass' Group and floated on the London Stock Exchange.
Besides his Granada role, Robinson is also chairman of satellite broadcaster BSkyB, a company controlled by media baron Rupert Murdoch in which Granada has a 10 per cent stake, and also chairman of the ITN television news operation.
Robinson, who earns £700,000 a year at Granada, lives in a six bed room house complete with indoor swimming pool in Holland Park, west London.
He lives with his second wife and their two young children, a boy and a girl. He also has a son and a daughter from his first marriage which ended in 1990. Besides golf, his hobbies include opera, chess, skiing and reading.
