Billionaire Easdale brothers who left school at 16 to work at their father’s scrap metal yard reveal how they’ve grafted their way to the top: ‘We weren’t born with a silver spoon but we know how to use one now’

Two black Rolls-Royces pull up and the suited Easdale brothers, Sandy and James, leave their security detail behind to head into Glasgow’s smartest hotel. Picture them then, if you will, as teenagers, elbow deep in filthy work at their father’s scrap metal yard cutting, cleaning and separating cables and you’ll see how far they’ve come.

Hard graft has inched them every mile to join Scotland’s billionaires – the pair are now worth a joint £1.425 billion, up by £62 million in last year’s Sunday Times Rich List. Since they left school at 16, without qualifications (and Sandy is dyslexic), they’ve driven hard bargains to build a portfolio across multiple sectors from hospitality and property to transport, manufacturing and metal.

And unlike the split sibling partnerships of the Barclay and Issa brothers, Sandy, 55, and 52-year-old James are tighter than ever.

I had been told they fill a doorframe and indeed they cut intimidating figures at over 6ft, with strong hair and gimlet gaze. That is until they begin to talk: quick fire, a thread of Glaswegian humour tying them together as they finish one another’s sentences.

‘James has got a better smile than me,’ says Sandy to the photographer as they pose in the grand salon. Sandy wears the lace-up brogues, the sensible older brother perhaps, while James, the younger, with the ready smile, wears loafers.

The two brothers as children. They left school at 16, without qualifications and have driven hard bargains to build a portfolio across multiple sectors from hospitality and property to transport, manufacturing and metal

Sandy said of his brother ‘Ah, we’re best friends and brothers. We turn to each other for comfort or advice. We’re often mistaken for twins. We’re both Aries, we clash horns but are grounded – if you believe that stuff.’ Pictured with Colin McMenamin (centre)

Clyde Metals, in Greenock, where it all began is still owned by the Easdales. Jim, their father, died aged 84 last month, unexpectedly. ‘We stayed by his bedside five days straight – and all without a drink,’ says Sandy, shaking his head.

Their father was a grafter, a good businessman but risk averse. Sandy holds out a wedding photograph of his parents on his mobile phone – a handsome couple. They credit their mother, Christina, who died ten years ago, as the driving force behind their insatiable desire to succeed.

‘She came from a bit of money and she was an inspiration to us in business. She’d always say, ‘Do it, you might not get the opportunity again.’ She bought an old sugar factory near us and split it into 12 separate industrial units. It was innovative in its day and we still earn money from it 40 years on.

‘Mum saw me buy my first Phantom Rolls-Royce at 38 which was pleasing for her,’ adds Sandy.

Even as gangly teenagers, the pair shared a small bedroom with a toy box between two beds. It was a simple enough childhood with the present of a Chopper each (red and blue) a highlight.

In 2004, they set their sights on McGill’s buses, which was then a small local transport company. The brothers have now transformed it into the largest independent bus operator in the UK and the McGill’s group turnover is now more than £120 million. Sandy (left) and James (right)