James Dyson: ‘The worst thing anyone has said to me? That my father had died. I was nine’
by Rosanna Greenstreet from Technology | The Guardian on (#5SPHD)
The inventor on the joy of Hockney, a fear of forgetfulness and how his father taught him to sink or swim
Born in Norfolk, Sir James Dyson, 74, studied at the Royal College of Art. He spent four years developing the cyclonic vacuum cleaner and went on to set up his company in 1992. Dyson products, now available in 82 countries, span household vacuums, purifier fans and heaters, lighting, hand dryers and haircare. This year he published his autobiography, Invention: a Life. He is married with three children and lives in Wiltshire.
What is your earliest memory?
Being lowered into a swimming pool by my father who had me in a rope noose attached to a stick. That's how I learned to swim.