Lord Glentoran was born in 1935, and was educated at Eton College and Grenoble University in France. He is married with three sons, three grandsons and two granddaughters.
After serving with the Grenadier Guards from 1954 to 1966, Lord Glentoran joined Kodak Ltd, where he worked as a Public Relations Officer. In 1971 he moved to Redland Tile and Brick Limited in Northern Ireland where he built up the company from small beginnings into a multi million pound subsidiary, ultimately holding the position of Managing Director, then Chairman by the time he left the firm in 1998.
In addition to his career interests, in 1964 Lord Glentoran won an Olympic Gold medal in the Bobsleigh event, and a World Championship Gold in 1965. In the same year he was awarded a MBE for services to sport. He retained his strong sporting links by, amongst other things, being President of the Jury at the 1976 Olympics, and he is still President of the British Bobsleigh Association.
In 1983, Lord Glentoran set up and became the Founder Chairman of the Ulster Games Foundation in an attempt to bring international sporting events to Ulster. In 1987, he was appointed Chairman of the Northern Ireland Tall Ships Council, and successfully managed to bring the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Race to Belfast, an event which he then subsequently organised.
Between 1992-96, Lord Glentoran was Chairman of Positively Belfast, which aimed to promote Belfast as a potential host city for major events. Because of these and other significant achievements, in 1992, Lord Glentoran as awarded a CBE for Services to Northern Ireland and Industry.
Robin Glentoran's Experience
Between 1993 and 1995, Lord Glentoran was Chairman of the “Growing a Green Economy” Committee, which reported to the then Northern Ireland Minister, Sir Robert Atkins (now an MEP).
Lord Glentoran first entered the House of Lords in 1995, and from 1999 to present he has been a Shadow Minister for Northern Ireland and Wales.
From 2001 to 2003, he was also a Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. He is also a member of the British/Irish Parliamentary Body.