In Channel 4's The Secret Millionaire, wealthy benefactors say goodbye to their luxury lifestyles and go undercover in deprived areas to find people who need their help. Alex Campbell spoke to the latest millionaire in the series who has not forgotten his Staffordshire roots

FROM unpacking meat in a freezing warehouse to starring in The Secret Millionaire, it has been a roller-coaster journey for tycoon Dominic List.

The 36-year-old, born in Silverdale, Newcastle, will take centre stage on Channel 4's popular show next week.

But despite making his fortune, the former Sneyd High School and Fenton Sixth Form pupil has not forgotten where it all began.

"I'm very proud of where I grew up and I still have a huge number of friends and family in the area," he said.

"Growing up, I missed a lot of school because of bad asthma and I couldn't really get into the groove with education.

"When I got to Fenton Sixth Form, I had a much better experience. There were people there who wanted to get their heads down and get on with it. I made a lot of progress there."

Dominic's parents moved to Shropshire midway through his childhood, taking Dominic, his sister and his two brothers across the Staffordshire border.

But by that point, Dominic's dad Robert had already clocked up two decades as a Potteries businessman and was not about to quit the habit.

The pair commuted to Stoke-on-Trent daily, and his dad's recruitment agency, Workforce Employment, was never short of an obliging apprentice.

"At one point I was sweeping floors and making tea at Boots in Stafford, but I did worse than that," Dominic said.

"I worked in a freezing warehouse where the snot froze to my face, I did cleaning in kilns where I'd be sweating buckets, and I even worked at a sewerage in Trentham.

"When I was 17, I drove a rusty Rover Maestro. It was a cast-off from my older brother with an old kebab under one of the seats. The RAC would be down for five hours fixing it.

"My dad believed if we wanted something, we had to go out and earn it."

After three years at Fenton Sixth Form, Dominic moved on to study at Plymouth University – returning during the summer to toil for his dad.

Somewhere in between, he found time for an ill-fated boy band and a defeat on the TV show Blind Date.

As a graduate, he again returned to Stoke-on-Trent, spending a year with mobile phone company Caudwell Group and two years with Brightpoint, another telecoms firm.

The hard work eventually paid off. He founded his own telecoms business Comtact, based in London.

It has been a steady path to success ever since. Comtact – which has offices in Albion Street, Hanley – is now turning over £5.5 million a year.

Dominic, who employs about 50 people, said: "We are a national company now and it really helps us to have a base in Stoke-on-Trent. It acts almost as our Northern office because we do quite a bit of business up in Manchester and Liverpool."

But even as a Secret Millionaire, Dominic did not have everything as easily as he may have liked.

On the show he goes undercover in Peckham, home to some of the highest levels of crime in the UK.

Viewers will see Dominic plucked from his riverside penthouse in London and thrown straight into a world dominated by gang violence.

"I find that a lot of the shows are quite easy going, but this one was particularly tough" he said.

"I was working with struggling youngsters in Peckham. On the one hand you have to deal with the constant filming and trying to say the right things, and on the other I was hearing some really horrific stories.

"It was exhausting but amazing."

Dad Robert, aged 63, who still runs Workforce Employment, also in Albion Street, said: "Dominic has done it on his own. He had a steady upbringing but that was all.

"I've been here for advice, but he's had to make his own way.

"When my kids have had bad breaks at college or university, I've had them working for me.

"Dominic was no different. I told him that if he didn't do well at college, he'd have to come and do it full-time."

Mum Sandra List, a former teacher, aged 63, said: "I'm very proud of him. He has had to earn it. He has put 100 per cent into everything and is still doing so.

"On The Secret Millionaire, it wasn't just about him throwing money at a charity, it has been very hands on and I know he will continue to be involved."

Dominic's episode of The Secret Millionaire airs at 9pm on Wednesday, October 7, on Channel 4.

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