GB News owner Sir Paul Marshall has sealed his takeover of The Spectator in a deal worth £100m.
The hedge fund billionaire will take control of the historic political magazine, which was put up for sale alongside The Telegraph by Abu Dhabi-backed fund RedBird IMI earlier this year.
Sir Paul completed the deal through his Old Queen Street Ventures vehicle, which controls the UnHerd political website. The transaction also includes the art magazine Apollo.
In a statement, Sir Paul said: “As a long-term Spectator reader, I am delighted it is joining the Old Queen Street stable. The plan is for OQS to make good previous underinvestment in one of the world’s great titles.
“I am confident that OQS will be a fine custodian, building on the Spectator’s values and successful track record.”
The billionaire made his fortune at his hedge fund Marshall Wace but has moved into the public eye in recent years after backing startup news channel GB News, which he jointly owns with Dubai-based investment firm Legatum.
He also helped to set up UnHerd, which is led by editor-in-chief Freddie Sayers. UnHerd operates a private members’ club and brasserie on Old Queen Street, just a few doors down from The Spectator’s offices in the heart of Westminster.
Sir Paul said he will prioritise investment in journalism, with a focus on expanding the magazine’s readership in North America and stepping up its offering in video and audio.
Mr Sayers will remain chief executive of the expanded group and become publisher of The Spectator. OQS said The Spectator and UnHerd would remain fully separate titles, with independent editorial and governance structures.
The Spectator, which was founded in 1828 and is the oldest weekly periodical in the world, was brought together into one publishing division with The Telegraph under former owners the Barclay family.
The titles were snapped up by RedBird IMI as part of a complex debt deal to help the Barclays repay £1.2bn in debts due to Lloyds Banking Group.
But RedBird IMI, which is led by media mogul Jeff Zucker and majority backed by UAE vice president Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, was forced to put them back up for auction after ministers blocked the deal amid concerns about the impact on press freedom.
The Barclays sold The Spectator’s headquarters to a German rubber glove tycoon at the end of last year, but the magazine still has a seven-year lease on the property.
The sale of The Spectator will allow bankers at Robey Warshaw and Raine to proceed with the auction of The Telegraph.
Sir Paul is among a handful of bidders to have progressed to the second round of the auction alongside National World, the local newspaper group led by veteran executive David Montgomery.
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Former Cabinet minister Nadhim Zahawi has also assembled a consortium to bid for the newspaper, while there is understood to be one other foreign consortium in the running.
A £350m bid tabled by advertising tycoon Lord Saatchi was previously rejected, while Belgian publisher Mediahuis was also eliminated in the first round.
Daily Mail owner Lord Rothermere withdrew from the auction over the summer amid concerns any deal would face scrutiny on competition and media plurality grounds.
The £100m sale of the Spectator means RedBird IMI will need to sell The Telegraph for at least £500m to recoup the £600m it paid for the two titles. A deadline for second round bids has been set for later this month.
Jeff Zucker, chief executive of RedBird IMI, said: “Our aim with this phase of the process has been to secure ownership from a viable buyer for The Spectator, as well as complete a transaction that makes strong economic sense on our end.
“We were committed to moving quickly and capitalising on the strength of the asset and the significant interest from an eager marketplace. We have accomplished all of that with OQS Media and expect to have the same success as we pursue a buyer for the Telegraph Media Group.”
