Michio kariya biography of william hill

Of all the punters who visit a William Hill betting shop or logon to its website today to place a bet how many will give a moment’s thought to man who founded the betting company which still carries his name to this day?

2014 marks 80 years since William Hill established his betting company in 1934 – although he had been taking bets officially and unofficially since the 1920s – and to mark the anniversary a new book has been published exploring the life of both the man and the company he created (William Hill: the man and the business (2014) Graham Sharpe with Mihir Bose, Racing Post Books). 

The book is divided into two parts, the first being a biography of William Hill and the second a corporate biography of the company’s fortunes since Hill’s death in 1971.

Dealing as it does with Hill’s life from 1903 to 1971, the first part of the book also provides a social history of life in Britain in the 2