Gerald Francis Bowden (26 August 1935 – 7 January 2020) was a British

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

MP, who represented

Dulwich Dulwich (; ) is an area in south London, England. The settlement is mostly in the London Borough of Southwark, with parts in the London Borough of Lambeth, and consists of Dulwich Village, East Dulwich, West Dulwich, and the Southwark half ...

from 1983 until 1992. He was defeated by future Labour cabinet minister

Tessa Jowell Tessa Jane Helen Douglas Jowell, Baroness Jowell, (; 18 September 1947 – 12 May 2018) was a British Labour Party politician and life peer who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dulwich and West Norwood, previously Dulwich, from 1 ...

in the 1992 general election.

Career

He was an honours graduate in Jurisprudence from Magdalen College, Oxford; was called to the bar at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wa ...

and qualified as a chartered surveyor at the

College of Estate Management The University College of Estate Management (abbreviated to UCEM), formerly the College of Estate Management (CEM) is an independent UK-based higher education institution which provides courses by distance learning for people in the real estate dev ...

, practising part-time in these professions. Commissioned during

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

he continued to serve in the Territorial Army, retiring in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He held an academic appointment as a principal lecturer in the law of property at

London South Bank University London South Bank University (LSBU) is a public university in Elephant and Castle, London. It is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name. Founded in 1892 as the Borough P ...

(formerly South Bank Polytechnic) from 1971 to 1984. Gerald Bowden represented

on the

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

from 1977 to 1981. He was MP for

from 1983 until 1992. On leaving Parliament he took up an academic appointment at Kingston University and resumed practice at the planning bar. He was a trustee of the Royal Albert Hall, and was previously Chairman of the Dulwich Estate (Alleyn's College of God's Gift) and the Walcot Foundation, a trustee of the Magdalen College Development Trust, and the Oxford and Cambridge Club.

Personal life

Bowden's daughter Emma died when the seaplane she was travelling in crashed into

Cowan Creek Cowan Creek is located in New South Wales, Australia. It is a tidal subcatchment of the Hawkesbury River. Almost all of the catchment lies within Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. Tributaries include Coal and Candle Creek, which branches off from ...

, north of the Australian city of Sydney, on New Year's Eve, 2017. Emma and her daughter Heather Bowden-Page were both killed immediately alongside her fiancé

Richard Cousins Richard John Cousins (29 March 1959 – 31 December 2017) was a British businessman, and the chief executive officer of the world's largest foodservice company, the Compass Group, based in Chertsey, Surrey. Early life Richard Cousins was born o ...

, 58, and his two sons William, 25, and Edward, 23."Ex-Tory MP father of seaplane victim tells of his grief" p 13 Daily Telegraph Issue no 50,580 dated Wednesday 03 January 2018

References

Sources

*''Times Guide to the House of Commons 1992'' *''Hansard'' *''Who's Who''

External links

* 2020 deaths 1935 births Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Greater London Council UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1987–1992 Politics of the London Borough of Southwark Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Alumni of University College of Estate Management Academics of London South Bank University Members of Gray's Inn {{England-Conservative-UK-MP-1930s-stub