John Towers (businessman) Nick Stephenson and John Edwards, Towers formed Phoenix Venture Holdings (PVH) which bought Rover Group for £10 in April 2000. In addition they also bought the Studley Castle, a conference hotel. They subsequently purchased Midland Powertrain, MG Rover's engine plant from BMW for £20. Finally, for £50 along with an undisclosed sum from the Royal Bank of Scotland, they purchased Rover Capital, (now MG Rover Capital) a book of Rover car loans. Kevin Howe was appointed MG Rover's Managing Director in July 2000. In April 2005, MG Rover went into administration, following the collapse of takeover talks with Shanghai Automotive
John W. Stephenson John W. Stephenson Sir John Walker Stephenson (1888 – 15 May 1960) was a British trade unionist. Born in Northumberland, Stephenson completed an apprenticeship as a plumber and joined the United Operative Plumbers and Domestic Engineers Association of Great Britain and Ireland. He was active in the union for many years before winning election as its general secretary in 1929. As general secretary, Stephenson was prominent in the wider trade union movement, serving as the Trade Union Congress' delegate to the American Federation of Labour in 1938, as President of the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions from 1939 to