Meet Trailblazer 4 - Peter Kershaw

It was 1968 when Peter Kershaw succeeded his uncle Sir Edward Holt II as Chairman of Joseph Holt. Sir Edward had been at the helm of the brewery for four decades, a length of service at the top only surpassed by the 46 year leadership of his father, Sir Edward I.

No small feat to follow for Peter Kershaw.

But Peter wasn’t the first Kershaw to join Joseph Holt. Late in the 1920s, his father Harold Kershaw was brought into the business by his brother-in-law Edward II to join him on the board as a non-Executive Director.

Kershaw was all set to join his Father and Uncle at the family business in 1939. However, with the outbreak of World War II, Peter instead joined the Navy where he served in destroyers throughout the war.

Peter returned from wartime naval service in the Far East in 1946. He wasted no time in starting straight up in the brewhouse.

Alongside his passion for all things beer and pubs, Peter Kershaw was one of the outstanding racquets and real tennis players of his generation winning several UK singles and doubles amateur championships.

In 1939 at the age of 23, Kershaw won his first amateur UK singles racquets championship and won the Noel Bruce Cup seven times in a row after the second world war.

With real tennis, Kershaw was UK amateur singles champion in 1948 and 1951, as well as winning the amateur doubles championship on seven occasions.

It’s clear that Peter Kershaw wasn’t just a talented sportsman and businessman, he was also a generous charity donor. In 1974 he set up the Peter Kershaw Trust which has since donated large amounts to local Manchester charities.

Peter Kershaw sadly passed away in May 2000 at the age of 85 after more than half a century at the brewery. A trailblazer in every way.