Obituary: Sir George Turnbull

GEORGE TURNBULL was a man of unaffected generosity with a tremendous capacity for enjoying the fruits of his remarkable success in the motor industry and the City, writes Rupert Christiansen (further to the obituary by Jonathan Wood, 24 December).

Staunchly (though not uncritically) conservative in his political views, he was in his private life a liberal-minded man without bigotry, pomposity or snobbery. He also knew that to give of your best Monday to Friday, it was important to relax on Saturday and Sunday. In his younger days he had been captain of rugby for Warwickshire and latterly he became a keen golfer; but almost any sport, from chess to water-skiing, stimulated his enthusiasm. Otherwise his idea of a good weekend consisted of a drop of good wine and whisky, the Daily Telegraph crossword, and the company of a small group of old friends.

Devotedly tended by his wife Marion, he faced the decline in his powers with the same calm and rationality that he had brought to his distinguished career.