At age 61, Sir Alan Sugar should be on top of the world. He may have emerged from humble beginnings, but this has never hindered him; he was rated at number 84 in the 2007 Sunday Times Rich list.

Business Chronicles

Sir Alan is the son of a tailor. He left school at age 16 to pursue the life of a salesman. At the age of 21, he founded Amstrad (Alan Michael Sugar Trading) and in the same year he married his wife, Ann. In 1980, Amstrad began trading on the London Stock Exchange. During the 1980's, the price of Amstrad shares doubled in value every year and in 1991, Sir Alan and Terry Venables bought the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club after a late bid from Robert Maxwell.

Unfortunately, the pairing of Sir Alan and Terry Venables did not last. They were involved in very bitter court battles. Sir Alan has referred to his life with the Spurs as "a waste of time", even though Sir Alan became Chairman of Tottenham Hotspur FC in 1991 and up until 2007; he was also their largest single stockholder.

Always keen to do his part for humanity, Sir Alan's name is linked with several charities including Great Ormond Street Hospital, the Hackney Empire and Jewish Care. For his services to business, Sir Alan Sugar was knighted in 2000; both City University and Brunel have awarded him honorary Doctorates of Science degrees.

In the Public Eye

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown asked Sir Alan to join the government's Treasury Industry Team where he is an advisor on youth enterprise. He has two enterprises which keep him in the public eye; investment company, Amsprop, which he co-owns with his son Daniel and his hit TV show.

In 2005, the BBC TV reality show approached Sir Alan to join The Apprentice, which was based on Donald Trump's successful American show of the same title. Weekly, Sir Alan Sugar confronts his latest aspiring business entrepreneurs in a "take no prisoners fashion" with his trusty assistants; Nick Hewer and Margaret Mountford at his side. Could life get any sweeter Sir Alan?

Written by Sandra Pianin