Sir John Basil Zochonis (2 October 1929 – 30 November 2013) was a British industrialist and philanthropist, the chairman of

PZ Cussons PZ Cussons plc is a major British manufacturer of personal healthcare products and consumer goods. It operates worldwide, especially in nations in Africa and the Commonwealth. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange. History Pa ...

, and the great nephew of its founder, George Zochonis.

Early life

John Zochonis was born in Cheshire. He attended

Rugby School Rugby School is a Public school (United Kingdom), private boarding school for pupils aged 13–18, located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire in England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independ ...

and studied at

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517 by Richard Fo ...

Career

He joined PZ Cussons in 1953.

Philanthropy

He was well known for his charity, and has been called "possibly the largest giver in the North West". He gave to, inter alia,

Chethams School of Music Chetham's School of Music () is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private co-educational boarding school, boarding and day school, day music school in Manchester, England. Chetham's educates pupils between the ages of 8 and 18, all of wh ...

, the Clonter Opera, the

Buxton Festival The Buxton International Festival is an annual summer festival of opera, music and (since 2000) a literary series, held in Buxton, Derbyshire, England since its beginnings in July 1979. The 2020 festival was cancelled due to the Covid-19 crisis. ...

, the

Manchester International Festival The Manchester International Festival is a biennial international arts festival, with a specific focus on original new work, held in the English city of Manchester and run by Factory International. The festival is a biennial event, first takin ...

Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre, England. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupi ...

, the

Lowry Centre Lowry is a theatre and gallery complex at Salford Quays, Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is named after the early 20th-century painter L. S. Lowry, known for his paintings of industrial scenes in North West England. The complex opened ...

, Manchester Midday Concerts Society,

Royal Exchange Theatre The Royal Exchange is a grade II listed building in Manchester, England. It is located in the city centre on land bounded by St Ann's Square, Exchange Street, Market Street, Cross Street and Old Bank Street. The complex includes the Royal Exc ...

and the

Northern Chamber Orchestra Northern Chamber Orchestra (NCO) is a British chamber orchestra based in Manchester, England. Established in 1967, the orchestra gives concerts at The Kings' School, Macclesfield and The Stoller Hall, Manchester as well as a Christmas concert at T ...

Personal life

In 1990, he married Brigid Demetriades (née Smyth), who survives him.

References

1929 births 2013 deaths People educated at Rugby School Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Businesspeople from Cheshire Businesspeople from Greater Manchester Deputy lieutenants of Greater Manchester English people of Greek descent Knights Bachelor

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

20th-century British philanthropists {{UK-business-bio-1920s-stub