Family feud: Inside the Succession-grade saga gripping Canada’s grandest family

Pocket dials, fratricide, and teenaged tantrums: the Rogers family makes the Roys look soft

In ancient times, fratricide was a much simpler affair. Take Cain, for instance — he did his brother Abel’s head in with a stone. Today’s methods are far more complicated. Just ask Edward Rogers III, chairman of Rogers Communications, the largest media company in Canada. His attempts to wrest control of his family’s £18 billion dollar firm have set his entire family at each other’s throats. Comparisons with Succession were inevitable. The difference is the dysfunctional Roy family depicted in the HBO show would never be as calculating or as cold as the Rogers clan.

Rogers owns everything exciting and lucrative in Canada. It has stakes in telecoms, media, hockey, baseball, basketball, and American football. The bigshot founder Edward Rogers Jr – Ted – became Canada’s fifth richest man before he died of heart failure in 2008. He did not appoint an heir, which left his descendants to fight over his legacy like a bag of hungry snakes.

At a time of great importance in the Rogers story – the company, which has struggled since the death of Ted, was about to buy a rival called Shaw Media for £15 billion – it all hit the fan. Edward, the 52-year-old son of the late Ted, was trying to oust rivals to secure his own position, and become capo di tutti capi in the family business.

Become a Gentleman’s Journal Member?

Like the Gentleman’s Journal? Why not join the Clubhouse, a special kind of private club where members receive offers and experiences from hand-picked, premium brands. You will also receive invites to exclusive events, the quarterly print magazine delivered directly to your door and your own membership card.

Click here to find out more