David John Mellor, QCQueen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
(born 12 March 1949) is a British politician, non-practising
barristerA barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
, broadcaster, journalist and football pundit. A member of the
Conservative PartyThe Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, he served in the
CabinetThe Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
of
Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
John MajorSir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
as
Chief Secretary to the TreasuryThe Chief Secretary to the Treasury is the third most senior ministerial position in HM Treasury, after the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer . In recent years, the office holder has usually been given a junior position in the British Cabinet...
(1990–92) and Secretary of State for National Heritage (April–September 1992), before resigning following a series of scandals in 1992. He was the
Member of ParliamentThe Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
(MP) for
Putney-Elections 1950–1979:-Elections 1918–1945:-Notes and references:...
from 1979-97. Since leaving Parliament, he has worked in the media and served as Chairman of the government's '
FootballAssociation football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
Task Force'.
Political career
Born in
WarehamWareham is an historic market town and, under the name Wareham Town, a civil parish, in the English county of Dorset. The town is situated on the River Frome eight miles southwest of Poole.-Situation and geography:...
,
DorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, Mellor was educated at
Swanage Grammar SchoolSwanage Grammar School was established in 1929 in Swanage, Dorset, England. It closed in 1974. The building is now defunct having been used as a centre for outdoor pursuits and geography based learning. Robert Rochelle managed the centre for the final 16 years...
, and
Christ's CollegeChrist's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
,
CambridgeThe University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, where he was Chairman of the
Cambridge University Conservative AssociationThe Cambridge University Conservative Association is a long-established political society going back to 1921, with roots in the late nineteenth century, as a Conservative branch for students at Cambridge University in England...
and a contestant on
University ChallengeUniversity Challenge is a British quiz programme that has aired since 1962. The format is based on the American show College Bowl, which ran on NBC radio from 1953 to 1957, and on NBC television from 1959 to 1970....
. After briefly working for Jeffrey Archer, then a
Member of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP), while studying for his bar exams, Mellor became a barrister in 1972 and a Queens Counsel in 1987. He is currently not practising. After contesting West Bromwich East in the
general election in October 1974The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
, he became the MP for
Putney-Elections 1950–1979:-Elections 1918–1945:-Notes and references:...
in the
1979 general electionThe United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
.
Mellor served a prolonged spell as a junior minister in several departments in the 1980s, including the
Home OfficeThe Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
. He was made a
Privy CouncillorHer Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
in 1990 by
Margaret ThatcherMargaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, shortly before she resigned as Prime Minister. Mellor was briefly
Arts MinisterIn the United Kingdom government, the Minister for the Arts is a ministerial post, usually a low to middle-ranking minister to the much senior Secretary of State, who runs the entire department and is ultimately responsibility for the department's brief....
in 1990 before entering John Major's new Cabinet as
Chief Secretary to the TreasuryThe Chief Secretary to the Treasury is the third most senior ministerial position in HM Treasury, after the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer . In recent years, the office holder has usually been given a junior position in the British Cabinet...
in November 1990. After the
1992 general electionThe United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
he was made
Secretary of StateThe Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport is a United Kingdom cabinet position with responsibility for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The role was created in 1992 by John Major as Secretary of State for National Heritage...
in the newly created Department for National Heritage, during which period he was
vernacularA vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
ly known as the "Minister for Fun" after comments he made to the waiting press on leaving 10 Downing Street on his appointment.
Scandals
Mellor had claimed during a television interview that December that "the press - the popular press - is drinking in the Last Chance Saloon" and called for curbs on the "sacred cow" of press freedom. The press was coming under heavy criticism at this time, but subsequent events led these comments to rebound on him.
In July 1992, Mellor was involved in a kiss and tell scandal in which actress
Antonia de SanchaAntonia de Sancha is an actress and businesswoman known to have had an affair with British Conservative Member of Parliament and Cabinet member David Mellor in 1992...
sold her story of Mellor's
extra-marital affairAffair may refer to professional, personal, or public business matters or to a particular business or private activity of a temporary duration, as in family affair, a private affair, or a romantic affair.-Political affair:...
with her, for £30,000. Their conversation had been secretly recorded by de Sancha's landlord, an activity which is legal in England..
The SunThe Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
, relying on a story supplied by publicist,
Max CliffordMaxwell Frank Clifford is an English publicist, considered the highest-profile and best-known publicist in the United Kingdom...
, reported that Mellor had asked to make love to de Sancha while wearing a
Chelsea F.C.Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
replica kit. It was also reported that de Sancha had sucked Mellor's toes.
Mellor managed to survive in office after this incident, though it allowed
Fleet StreetFleet Street is a street in central London, United Kingdom, named after the River Fleet, a stream that now flows underground. It was the home of the British press until the 1980s...
and the tabloids to round on him. The satirical programme
Spitting ImageSpitting Image is a British satirical puppet show that aired on the ITV network from 1984 to 1996. It was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central Television. The series was nominated for 10 BAFTA Awards, winning one for editing in 1989....
portrayed Mellor as having
halitosisHalitosis is a term used to describe noticeably unpleasant odors exhaled in breathing. Halitosis is estimated to be the third most frequent reason for seeking dental aid, following tooth decay and periodontal disease.- General :...
, with a green plume emanating from the puppet's mouth. Evidence emerged that he had enjoyed a free holiday in August 1990 as the guest of Mona Bauwens, a daughter of the
Palestine Liberation OrganizationThe Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
official Jaweed al-Ghussein, and another paid for by the ruler of Abu Dhabi. It was this that led to his resignation rather than the earlier affair. After three weeks of revelations,
Sir Marcus FoxSir John Marcus Fox MBE was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as the Member of Parliament for Shipley from 1970 to 1997. He was chairman of the 1922 Committee and he directly oversaw candidate selection for the Conservative Party in the 1979 General Election.-Early life:Fox had...
, chairman of the backbench
1922 CommitteeIn British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
, reportedly told Mellor in a phone call that he was becoming an embarrassment to John Major. Mellor resigned on 24 September 1992, causing
The SunThe Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
to jeer "From Toe Job to No Job" on its front page. This came just seven days after the front page headline "Now We've All Been Screwed by the Cabinet" which was a double pun on Mellor's sex scandal as well as the "
Black WednesdayIn politics and economics, Black Wednesday refers to the events of 16 September 1992 when the British Conservative government was forced to withdraw the pound sterling from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism after they were unable to keep it above its agreed lower limit...
" financial disaster the previous day which saw interest rates rise from 10% to 12% and the devalued
Pound sterlingThe pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
removed from the
European Exchange Rate MechanismThe European Exchange Rate Mechanism, ERM, was a system introduced by the European Community in March 1979, as part of the European Monetary System , to reduce exchange rate variability and achieve monetary stability in Europe, in preparation for Economic and Monetary Union and the introduction of...
.
Mellor later suggested that he was hounded out of office, but tabloid editors quickly rejected this; indeed Bill Hagerty, editor of
The People, said, "This is the first time in ages that David Mellor has done the decent thing".
Defeat at 1997 general election
Mellor contested the
1997 general electionThe United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, but was defeated by the
Labour PartyThe Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
's Tony Colman as one of the most notable Tory casualties as Labour won by a landslide to end nearly 20 years of Tory rule. The election night was memorable for Mellor's showdown with the
Referendum PartyThe Referendum Party was a Euro-sceptic, single issue party in the United Kingdom formed by Sir James Goldsmith to fight the 1997 General Election. The party called for a referendum on aspects of the UK's relationship with the European Union.-Policy:...
founder
Sir James GoldsmithSir James Michael "Jimmy" Goldsmith was an Anglo-French billionaire financier and tycoon. Towards the end of his life, he became a magazine publisher and a politician. In 1994, he was elected to represent France as a Member of the European Parliament and he subsequently founded the short-lived...
— Mellor was taunted by Goldsmith and a crowd of other candidates (who gave him a slow hand clap and shouted "Out! Out! Out!") during his concession speech. Mellor retorted:
After Parliament
Mellor was chairman of the incoming Labour government's 'Football Task Force' from August 1997 until its dissolution in 1999.
Mellor has also pursued a career in journalism, and has written for the
Evening StandardThe Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
,
The GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
and
The PeopleThe People, previously known as the Sunday People, is a British tabloid Sunday-only newspaper. The paper was founded on 16 October 1881.It is published by the Trinity Mirror Group.In July 2011 it had an average daily circulation of 806,544....
, usually on sport or the arts. He regularly presented football-related programmes on
BBC Radio 5BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
until 2001, and classical music programmes on
BBC Radio 2BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
and
BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
. He currently presents
If You Like That, You'll Like This and
The New CD Show on
Classic FMClassic FM, one of the United Kingdom's three Independent National Radio stations, broadcasts classical music in a popular and accessible style.-Overview:...
, and is a regular contributor on LBC Radio, often in conversation with former London Mayor, Ken Livingstone, as well as occasionally hosting his own show on the station.
Private life
Mellor married Judith on 20 July 1974. They divorced in March 1995.
Mellor currently lives with his girlfriend, Penelope, Viscountess Cobham, in the Dockmaster's House, a 19th-century
listed building at the gateway to
St Katharine DocksSt Katharine Docks, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, were one of the commercial docks serving London, on the north side of the river Thames just east of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge...
, east London. On 30 May 2006 it was reported that Mellor has spoken out against the proposed construction of a 17-storey block of flats in St Katharine Docks. Mellor said, "There is no design involved. It would look tawdry down the wrong end of a beach in Torremolinos. This isn't a case of just not wanting it in my backyard. This area is historically significant with listed buildings and it's next to the Tower of London, which is a World Heritage Site".
External links
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