'An absolute inspiration': Tributes pour in for self-made millionaire businesswoman and Dragons' Den star Hilary Devey after her death at age 65 in Morocco following long battle with illness

  • British businesswoman Hilary Devey had an estimated net worth of £80million, making her fortune through Pall-Ex, her freight distribution business which she founded in 1996, financed by selling her house and car
  • A spokesperson for the Dragons' Den star said she had been 'ill for some time' and died in her holiday home
  • She was awarded a CBE in 2013 for transport industry and charity services, and has worked with Carer's Trust 
  • The 65-year-old Bolton-born millionaire suffered a stroke in 2009 and made her 'lose a third of her brain'

By Lizzie May and Jonathan Rose For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

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Dragons' Den star Hilary Devey has died aged 65 after battling a 'long illness', her publicist confirmed today.

The Bolton-born multi-millionaire entrepreneur passed away at her holiday home in Morroco on Saturday night.

She joined BBC Two programme Dragons' Den in 2011 and left in 2012, going on to present Channel 4's The Intern. 

Hilary, who was married three times, became a popular figure after demonstrating her matter-of-fact approach and was usually seen donning shoulder-padded businesswear.

In 2013 she was made a CBE, honoured for a career in business and for her charitable work.

She founded the multimillion-pound freight distribution business Pall-Ex, after selling her home and car in the 1990s to finance it.    

Her charity work included her position as vice president of the Carers Trust and she was also a patron of the Stroke Association, having herself suffered a stroke in 2009. She also appeared in The Business Inspector on Channel 5.

Hilary was married to Ed Devey, Malcolm Sharples from 1976 to 1978 and Philip Childs from 2011 to 2013, and has one son, Mevlit Brewster-Ahmet, who is 35. 

Mevlit's father was Hilary's long-term partner, a Turkish businessman called Hussein, who could not wed Devey as he was already married to another woman with five children.

This tale mirrored that of her mother's - in October 2012, Devey shared a story on BBC Radio 4 where she explained that her mother discovered, years into her relationship with Hilary's father, already had a wife and four children. 

British businesswoman and star of Dragons' Den Hilary Devey has died at the age of 65 after battling a 'long illness'

British businesswoman and star of Dragons' Den Hilary Devey has died at the age of 65 after battling a 'long illness'

Ms Devey, who was awarded a CBE in 2013 for services to the transport industry and charity, rose to fame on the BBC Two hit series Dragons' Den (pictured second left with other dragons Duncan Bannatyne, Theo Paphitis, Deborah Meaden and Peter Jones) and became a popular figure after demonstrating her matter-of-fact approach

Ms Devey, who was awarded a CBE in 2013 for services to the transport industry and charity, rose to fame on the BBC Two hit series Dragons' Den (pictured second left with other dragons Duncan Bannatyne, Theo Paphitis, Deborah Meaden and Peter Jones) and became a popular figure after demonstrating her matter-of-fact approach

BBC presenter Greg James paid tribute to Hilary Devey, describing her as an 'absolute inspiration for women' seeking to make their mark in male-dominated industries

BBC presenter Greg James paid tribute to Hilary Devey, describing her as an 'absolute inspiration for women' seeking to make their mark in male-dominated industries

Hilary, pictured on 3 October 2013 at Windsor Castle, was made a CBE for her services to the transport industry and charitable work

Hilary, pictured on 3 October 2013 at Windsor Castle, was made a CBE for her services to the transport industry and charitable work

Hilary Devey is pictured with her only son, Mevlit Brewster-Ahmet, who is now 35, pictured in 2008 with his mother at their Grade II listed home, Rangemore Hall

Hilary Devey is pictured with her only son, Mevlit Brewster-Ahmet, who is now 35, pictured in 2008 with his mother at their Grade II listed home, Rangemore Hall

She has been married three times, to Ed Devey, Malcolm Sharples from 1976 to 1978 and Philip Childs from 2011 to 2013, and has one son, Mevlit Brewster-Ahmet, who is 35. Pictured with Malcolm Sharples

She has been married three times, to Ed Devey, Malcolm Sharples from 1976 to 1978 and Philip Childs from 2011 to 2013, and has one son, Mevlit Brewster-Ahmet, who is 35. Pictured with Malcolm Sharples

Hilary pictured on her wedding day with her mum, dad and Malcolm in Bolton Parish Church, February 1976. Hilary is wearing a replica of Princess Anne's dress

Hilary pictured on her wedding day with her mum, dad and Malcolm in Bolton Parish Church, February 1976. Hilary is wearing a replica of Princess Anne's dress

Hilary Devey's life was always tough before she became one of the country's most successful businesswoman: Dragons' Den star was kidnapped and raped at 12, lost her father young and changed schools more than 10 times after her family's business went bust  

Before finding fame, the life of Hilary Devey, the millionaire business woman who died this week following a battle with an illness, was rocked by a series of tragic events. 

At aged four, her parents' successful heating company went bust and she had to watch bailiff's empty out her home in Lancashire - which she would later say gave her the motivation to be successful, particularly after watching her father have to work in pubs to pay the bills. 

Her family were then moving around so much for work that she had to change schools more than 10 times. 

Then at aged 12, while living in Accrington, she was kidnapped and raped by a predator. 

Hilary revealed the traumatic event in her autobiography Bold As Brass, claiming an older girl named Sandra had taken her to the attacker, adding: 'He kept me there with him all night - the b****** who thought that raping a child was his due at the end of the night. He did it again and again.' 

'He just wouldn't stop and however much I kept trying to push him away, he didn't take any notice.

'Spots covered his face and he stank of something that I would later learn was garlic.

'I felt fear rise inside me when he started pulling at the school shirt I'd left on after changing my skirt for jeans. 'Please don't,' I cried.'

Adding to the trauma, she returned home only to be branded a 'dirty whore' by her father, who accused her of being out all night with a boy. 

Her father died of stomach cancer when she was just 18, and she never told her parents about the attack.  

She said: 'I remember the day he said, 'I'm dying'. I was devastated but he just got on with it. He was like me – take a painkiller and go. I am my father's daughter.'

While she would go on to have her own child, she previously told the Daily Mail how her achievement had come at great personal cost to her son Mevlit - now 35 - who developed a chronic drug addiction, spending £600 a day on heroin.

Hilary estimated that she had spent well over £500,000 on his recovery. 

She revealed back in 2011: 'In fact, the hardest work I've ever done is pulling my son back from the grip of heroin. He was six weeks from dying when I found out about his drug-taking seven years ago. It has been an utter hell. 

'For a long time I had to lock every door behind me. He would steal my clothes, food, electrical household items – anything he could sell for money to get a fix. He stole cash from my purse, took money out using my bank cards and pawned my jewellery.'

Hilary's life had always been tough. Her father, Arthur Brewster, ran a successful heating company in Bolton which went bust in the Sixties.

Her mother, Minnie, was in shock as her middle-class life as a housewife with a comfortable home disappeared overnight.

She recalled: 'My parents lost everything. One of my earliest memories was of the bailiffs coming into our large house and taking all the furniture when I was four.' Her dad became a publican and the family moved around constantly until Hilary was 15.

Although academically bright, she never stayed at a school long enough to make friends, let alone get into a routine. She developed a tough, independent streak. Her tenacity, she said, came from her father's uncompromising work ethic. Hilary and her two older brothers, Gary and Stuart, were expected to help in the pub during weekends and holidays.

She adored her father. 'I was taught that you work, you earn, you improve your life. I've been working since I was seven and was helping out behind the bar. Dad would pay us to do chores but he also made me pay him a taxi fare if he drove me somewhere.'

She inherited his 'backbone of steel' and was devastated when he died of stomach cancer in 1976. She was just 18 and had returned from a 12-month stint in the Women's Royal Air Force to get married to her teenage sweetheart, local boy Malcolm Sharples.

Hilary said: 'He was my first boyfriend. I realised that I wanted to experience more of life than Bolton had to offer and we parted after a ¬couple of years.'

She travelled around Europe as a sales rep for the book-and-record company Leisure Circle. After five years living in hotels she was ready to settle and ended up working in the rag trade in London's East End, where she met Mevlit's father, Hussein, a Turkish manufacturer. 'I had never met anyone of Eastern origin before,' said Hilary. 'He was charismatic and handsome. I was madly in love and we moved in together.'

When she became pregnant, Hilary was overjoyed and imagined herself soon married. They had been together for seven years but there was to be no happy ending. Mevlit was 18 months old when she learned Hussein was already married – with five children – in nearby Ilford.

Hilary fled penniless with Mevlit. Her boss at TNT, the parcel delivery service where she was then working, arranged for her to be transferred to Leicester. Hilary felt safer away from London.

After a few years she set herself up as a self-employed sales and marketing consultant. Her mother, who had remarried, moved nearby to help with child care.

She said: 'I didn't want my son to go without so I pushed myself hard to build a life for us. Fortunately I was always good with numbers and I loved the cut and thrust of business.'

It was early in 1996, while working with a garment parcel distribution company in Kent, that she spotted a niche in the pallet end of the haulage market and set up Pall-Ex with £112,000 she raised by selling her house and car.

'It was tough but I was a single mum and I was determined to provide a good life for us. I worked hard and for years survived on just a couple of hours' sleep per night,' she said.

The company had started to make a profit when she was told Mevlit was severely dyslexic – he was 11 but had a reading age of five. 'I was glad that I could afford to pay for him to attend a special boarding school in Lichfield in Staffordshire. But I think it was the beginning of his problems as he thought he was being pushed away. It drove a wedge between us.'

It did not help that Hilary married again – to Edwin Devey who, she said, only wanted her fortune: 'I was rich and lonely, having not had time for a relationship since Hussein. It lasted only months but cost me a lot of money.'

The marriage coincided with Mevlit's dabbling with drugs at 14 – he and Ed did not get on. 'Mevlit said he began taking marijuana, then ecstasy, progressing to crack cocaine and finally heroin, which gripped him like a vice after the third time.'

Hilary had no experience of hard drugs and did not know the signs. 'Mevlit became such a manipulative and accomplished liar that I had no idea what was going on,' she said.

'When he was rushed to hospital at 17, with what I thought was appendicitis, I sat by his bedside unaware he was suffering from withdrawal. The medical people would only tell me that he would be all right because they were not allowed to share that information and Mevlit would not confide in me.'

But Hilary finally discovered her son's terrible secret. He had asked her for money and she refused because he had only just received his allowance of £100 per week.

Driving on the motorway from Leicester to London, she stopped at a service station and saw she had 120 missed calls from him (her mobile had been on silent).

She returned home. 'He was in a terrible state, looking pasty and sweaty. I heard myself saying, 'It's drugs, isn't it?' and he said, 'Yeah.' '

Hilary coaxed him into confessing that he was injecting the drug into his groin. 'It took some time but he told me everything. I couldn't believe that it had been going on behind my back for three years, starting with him buying marijuana at the gates of his private school.' In desperation, Hilary went on the internet to discover what she could about heroin addiction. One of the things she learned was that some dealers lace marijuana with heroin.

She contacted several rehab clinics. 'The prices were astronomical but I was desperate so it didn't matter. I would have paid anything. He was my little boy, my baby. Even if I had no money I would have sold myself to help him.' Fortunately for her, money was no object.

 

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Dragons' Den star Theo Paphitis this afternoon paid tribute to the businesswoman tweeting: 'So sad to hear of the passing of the lovely Hilary Devey. She left us all with some fantastic memories, may she rest in peace. My thoughts are with her family. x'

Fellow Dragon Duncan Bannatyne wrote on Twitter: 'So sad to hear of the passing of the lovely Hilary Devey.

'She left us all with some fantastic memories, may she rest in peace. My thoughts are with her family. x' 

Dragons' Den presenter Evan Davis tweeted: 'So sorry to hear of Hilary Devey's passing.

'I didn't know her well, but she really brought a wonderful grit to the Den; it was quite different to anything we'd encountered and audiences loved it. She'll be long remembered.'

Veteran of Dragons' Den, Peter Jones CBE, told MailOnline: 'So sad to hear the news that Hilary has passed away. She was an inspiring woman, and it was great to spend time with her when she was on Dragons’ Den. Sending my deepest condolences to her family.' 

In 2014, Ms Devey revealed her ongoing health problems since suffering a stroke five years prior, which caused her to 'lose a third of her brain'.

During an appearance on ITV's This Morning, she said it took her six months to 'come to terms with it' and she had 'no energy to do anything'.

She said: 'There is so much now that I can't do. I remember coming home from the hospital and getting into the bathroom - and I thought what do I do now, I didn't even know to turn the shower on.

'It has taken away a lot of my life - I can't drive anymore because it has affected my vision, I have no sensation of touch, and I have a weak left leg... but I can still walk so I'm very grateful.'

It is not known if the health issues she encountered following her stroke in 2009 was a cause behind her death. 

Juliet Bouverie, chief executive of the Stroke Association, said: 'We are sad to hear that Hilary Devey has died after a long illness.

'After having a stroke herself, she was a long-time ambassador of the Stroke Association and we are very grateful for all the support she gave us over the years.

'Hilary was keen that all stroke survivors received the help and support they need to rebuild their lives after stroke. We send our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.'

Before finding fame, Hilary's life was rocked by a series of tragic events. 

At aged four, her parents' successful heating company went bust and she had to watch bailiff's empty out her home in Lancashire - which she would later say gave her the motivation to be successful, particularly after watching her father have to work in pubs to pay the bills. 

Her family were then moving around so much for work that she had to change schools more than 10 times. 

Then at aged 12, while living in Accrington, she was kidnapped and raped by a predator. 

Hilary revealed the traumatic event in her autobiography Bold As Brass, claiming an older girl named Sandra had taken her to the attacker, adding: 'He kept me there with him all night - the b****** who thought that raping a child was his due at the end of the night. He did it again and again.' 

'He just wouldn't stop and however much I kept trying to push him away, he didn't take any notice.

'Spots covered his face and he stank of something that I would later learn was garlic.

'I felt fear rise inside me when he started pulling at the school shirt I'd left on after changing my skirt for jeans. 'Please don't,' I cried.'

Adding to the trauma, she returned home only to be branded a 'dirty whore' by her father, who accused her of being out all night with a boy. 

Her father died of stomach cancer when she was just 18, and she never told her parents about the attack.  

She said: 'I remember the day he said, 'I'm dying'. I was devastated but he just got on with it. He was like me – take a painkiller and go. I am my father's daughter.'

While she would go on to have her own children, she previously told the Daily Mail how her achievement had come at great personal cost to her son Mevlit - now 35 - who developed a chronic drug addiction, spending £600 a day on heroin.

Hilary estimated that she had spent well over £500,000 on his recovery. 

She revealed back in 2011: 'In fact, the hardest work I've ever done is pulling my son back from the grip of heroin. He was six weeks from dying when I found out about his drug-taking seven years ago. It has been an utter hell. 

'For a long time I had to lock every door behind me. He would steal my clothes, food, electrical household items – anything he could sell for money to get a fix. He stole cash from my purse, took money out using my bank cards and pawned my jewellery.'

BBC Radio presenter Greg James described Devey as 'an absolute inspiration' for women. He tweeted: 'I'm so sad to hear the news about Hilary.

'An absolute inspiration for woman in particular who wanted to make their mark in male dominated industries, like she did in haulage.

'She was also SO MUCH FUN. And an absolute fashion icon.'

Hannah Wyatt, managing director of factual entertainment and events at BBC Studios, said: 'Hilary Devey will always hold a unique place in the hearts of Dragons' Den viewers and the programme team.

'We are all extremely saddened by her loss and our thoughts at this time are with her family and friends.'

Kate Phillips, director of BBC unscripted content, added: 'When Hilary entered the Den in 2011 she was formidable, fiery and completely unforgettable.

'A tough-talking Dragon who never minced her words, she also always saw the person behind the product, and was such an encouraging mentor and investor to so many entrepreneurs.

'A hugely successful businesswoman and television expert, she will be missed by all who knew her and benefited from her wise words and experience.'

Her charity work included her position as vice president of the Carers Trust and she was also a patron of the Stroke Association. 

Describing being made a CBE for services to the transport industry and to charity, she said at the time: 'In every sense of the word, this is a great honour and I am equally flattered and flabbergasted.

'It is wonderful to receive such recognition, but this should be less about me, and more about the charities that I support and the amazing transport sector in which I am privileged to work.

'So I dedicate my honour to the Carers Trust, the Stroke Association, and Fresh Start - New Beginnings, and the other charities that I have tried to support, as well as to the lorry drivers, forklift truck drivers and everyone else who works in the logistics sector: the unsung heroes of British industry.'

She has appeared on various other TV shows, including Secret Millionaire in 2008 when she donated £70,000 to Back Door Music Project and the Syke Community Centre in Rochdale.

In 2011, Hilary Devey appeared on the Graham Norton Show when the presenter described her as the 'most popular dragon' on the hit BBC Two show.

The 65-year-old had an estimated net worth of over £80million, and made her fortune by launching palletised freight network Pall-Ex, having launched it in 1996. She sold her home and car earlier in the 1990s to finance it.

She joined Dragons' Den in February 2011 following James Caan's departure from the show. Devey left the series in June 2012 to move to Channel 4 to host The Intern, a business documentary where three young interns try a week in their dream jobs.

Devey later said her best investment had been a mattress-cross-duvet duvet for caravans, boats and trucks.

In 2015, she claimed the show paid its dragons 'pittance' of £1,250 a day and complained that it was not enough to cover her expenses while working on the programme.

Working out at £15,000 for 12 episodes, which took 14 to 15 hours a day to film, she said that the only way to make money was through the investment opportunities the show offered.

But despite her complaints, the entrepreneur admitted she would consider returning to the show if asked.

She said she hoped to extend her investment portfolio - but added it would depend on who the other dragons were.

She also had a stint at ITV News in 2015, when she joined the Loose Women panel as a guest four months until leaving that September.

Hilary Devey's palletised goods distribution network Pall-Ex was the third of its kind in the UK, initially pioneered by Palletline in 1992. Pictured before she was a dragon

Hilary Devey's palletised goods distribution network Pall-Ex was the third of its kind in the UK, initially pioneered by Palletline in 1992. Pictured before she was a dragon

Edwina Dunn, Hilary Devey and Vivienne Cox who were nominated for the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the Year Award, from Grosvenor Crescent, London, pictured on 3 April 2006

Edwina Dunn, Hilary Devey and Vivienne Cox who were nominated for the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the Year Award, from Grosvenor Crescent, London, pictured on 3 April 2006

The television personality reportedly has homes in London, Morocco, Spain, and Boca Raton in Florida. Pictured is the home she had in Marrakech, Morocco, where it is reported she died on Saturday

The television personality reportedly has homes in London, Morocco, Spain, and Boca Raton in Florida. Pictured is the home she had in Marrakech, Morocco, where it is reported she died on Saturday

She also appeared in The Business Inspector on Channel 5.

Her palletised goods distribution network was the third of its kind in the UK, initially pioneered by Palletline in 1992.

Pall-Ex takes care of around 8,000 palletised shipments at its headquarters in Leicestershire each day, and makes deliveries to every UK postcode and 38 European countries daily.

The company's estimated annual revenues rack up just under £60million, and a combined international network turnover of over £100million.

Born in Bolton, the northern businesswoman previously lived near Burton-upon-Trent at her Grade II listed home, Rangemore Hall, in Staffordshire, but later relocated to Boylestone, Derbyshire.

The television personality reportedly has homes in London, Morocco, Spain, and Boca Raton in Florida.

A mansion she previously owned in Florida sold for £5.42million in 2014. 

Hilary Devey pictured at the The Pride of Britain Awards, at Grosvenor House, Park Lane, London in 2016
Born in Bolton, the northern businesswoman previously lived near Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire but later relocated to Boylestone, Derbyshire. The television personality reportedly has homes in London, Morocco, Spain, and Boca Raton in Florida

Born in Bolton, the northern businesswoman previously lived near Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire but later relocated to Boylestone, Derbyshire. The television personality reportedly has homes in London, Morocco, Spain, and Boca Raton in Florida. Pictured left at the The Pride of Britain Awards, at Grosvenor House, Park Lane, London in 2016, and right, during her time in Dragons' Den in 2012

Dragons' Den stars Theo Paphitis and Duncan Bannatyne paid tribute to businesswoman and a former panellist on the show Hilary Devey, following her death aged 65

Dragons' Den stars Theo Paphitis and Duncan Bannatyne paid tribute to businesswoman and a former panellist on the show Hilary Devey, following her death aged 65

Evan Davis, presenter of Dragons' Den, also paid tribute to the 'wonderful grit' Devey brought to the show

Evan Davis, presenter of Dragons' Den, also paid tribute to the 'wonderful grit' Devey brought to the show

In 2014, she revealed her ongoing health problems since suffering a stroke five years prior, which caused her to 'lose a third of her brain'. During an appearance on ITV's This Morning, she said it took her six months to 'come to terms with it' and she had 'no energy to do anything'. Pictured as a guest panelist on Loose Women in 2015)

In 2014, she revealed her ongoing health problems since suffering a stroke five years prior, which caused her to 'lose a third of her brain'. During an appearance on ITV's This Morning, she said it took her six months to 'come to terms with it' and she had 'no energy to do anything'. Pictured as a guest panelist on Loose Women in 2015)

In 2011, Hilary Devey appeared on the Graham Norton Show when the presenter described her as the 'most popular dragon' on the hit BBC Two show

In 2011, Hilary Devey appeared on the Graham Norton Show when the presenter described her as the 'most popular dragon' on the hit BBC Two show

In 2017, Devey gave up cigarettes after reportedly smoking 'at least 20 a day for over 40 years'.

'I've been hooked on cigarettes and ignoring the damage - even though I know the harm I'm doing,' she said at the time.

'I've found it extremely difficult to quit for good.'

She revealed her turbulent educational career to the Guardian in 2010, saying she went to 13 primary and secondary schools within her childhood, including Bolton Grammar. Devey was also fluent in Turkish.

Devey started working at 11 when she pulled pints in pubs and helped out at family businesses and did not go to university like her two brothers.

In 2009, she was the first woman to win the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport's Sir Robert Lawrence award, and in July 2010, she was awarded the honorary doctorate of laws by the University of Leicester.

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