Golden age: Lord Browne was fêted
as the Sun King of the oil industry
In his heyday at BP, Lord Browne earned the soubriquet of Sun King. But now his reign is drawing to a close, Sylvia Pfeifer and James Hall examine if the oil giant isn’t too large a kingdom to be ruled by one man
Britain’s business elite jetted off to Barbados over the New Year to escape the grey winter skies over London. Among those soaking up the Caribbean sun was Lord Browne of Madingley, the chief executive of BP.
For Browne, who was staying with friends, the blue skies offered a welcome respite from the troubles at home. The 58-year-old, thrice voted Britain’s most admired businessman and fêted as the “Sun King” of the oil industry, had a lot on his mind.