In today’s blog, we pay tribute to Betty Boothroyd, the first female Speaker of the Commons, who sadly died yesterday. Dr Emma Peplow, Head of our Oral History Project, reflects on her historic career. Betty Boothroyd will go down in parliamentary history as the first woman to be elected Speaker of the Commons – she was also the first Speaker to be elected from the … Continue reading A tribute to Betty Boothroyd
These are exciting times for our Oral History project, as we have two opportunities to come and work with us… Firstly, as you may have seen, we are looking for an intern this summer to help us with the planning and organisation of our project. The successful candidate will be working to compile background information on possible new interviewees and help us to identify who … Continue reading Oral History Project internship and PhD opportunity: come and work with us!
2022 has been a bumper year for the History of Parliament, as we settled into a ‘new normal’ of events both online and in person, launched new projects and publications, and continued to grow our online outreach. Here’s our Public Engagement Manager Connie Jeffery with a round-up of another busy twelve months… After two years of uncertainty and unsettled working, for the History of Parliament … Continue reading Review of the Year 2022
Over the past few weeks UK Heritage institutions have been marking Disability History Month, and in today’s blog we hear from Dr Emmeline Ledgerwood, the History of Parliament’s Oral History Project Manager. Listening to the project’s interview with former MP Sir John Hannam sparked a research trail that led her towards a key figure in disability rights campaigning: Dr Margaret Agerholm. In his interview for … Continue reading ‘Helping the Disabled to Live to Capacity’: rediscovering Dr Margaret Agerholm through parliamentary history
As the History of Parliament Oral History Project continues to go from strength to strength following a two-year hiatus, here volunteer interviewer Peter Reilly reflects on his recent interview with Lord David Hunt, MP for Wirral and later Wirral West 1976-1997. A member of cabinet under both Margaret Thatcher and John Major, throughout his career- and interview- Hunt proved committed to a topic still making … Continue reading The search for good governance
Our Parliaments, Politics and People seminar is back for the autumn term! At next week’s seminar our head of Oral History, Dr Emma Peplow, will discuss what drove MPs into politics using materials gathered from our Oral History Project. The seminar takes place on 18 October 2022, between 5:30 and 7:00 p.m. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means you can attend either in-person in London … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People seminar: ‘That was how politics started for me’: memories on motivations from the History of Parliament Trust’s Sound Archive
When newly elected MPs first enter the Palace of Westminster, it is hard to ignore the hundreds of years of history that surrounds them. And as Dr Emma Peplow, Head of Oral History at the History of Parliament explores, this legacy could prove inspirational, impressive, or even overwhelming… Find out more about the history of the Palace of Westminster and its famous Elizabeth Tower, home … Continue reading ‘You just become a tiny little speck of history’: First Impressions of the Palace of Westminster
Since 2012 our team of volunteers have been interviewing former MPs about their lives and careers for the History of Parliament Oral History project, and often their memories reflect on current events both in Westminster and the wider world. Here, volunteer interviewer Peter Reilly discusses some of the key moments in the career of Michael Morris, Lord Naseby, who throughout his life had close links … Continue reading The world of parliament extends beyond the Commons and Lords
Once again, the powerful backbench Conservative 1922 committee is back in the headlines. Here Dr Emma Peplow, head of our Oral History Project, shares some of former MPs’ memories of its workings and influence… Whilst the 1922 Committee comes to public attention only at times of political drama, for the former Conservative MPs interviewed for our oral history project, it was a central part of … Continue reading ‘Always great fun: particularly when there was a row going on’: memories of the 1922 Committee
As we have seen in some of our previous blogs, the role of Speaker of the House has a long history, but it wasn’t until the late 20th century that women took to the Speaker’s Chair. Through the History of Parliament Oral History Project we have been able to interview some of the female former MPs who occupied the roles of Speaker and Deputy Speaker, … Continue reading Women Speakers and Deputy Speakers
The History of Parliament 