Greenwich
Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross.
Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, Connecticut, US), is a freelance journalist and political consultant particularly associated with the
UK Independence Party
The UK Independence Party (UKIP, ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of parliament (both through defect ...
(UKIP). In January 2015 he was elected president of the
Chartered Institute of Journalists
The Chartered Institute of Journalists is a professional association for journalists and is the senior such body in the UK and the oldest in the world.
History
The ''Chartered Institute of Journalists'' was proposed during a meeting in Manchest ...
, having previously been elected to the institute's governing council from 2003 to 2007 and from 2013 to 2015. He was president of the institute from 2016 to 2018.
Early life
Croucher was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, US to British parents. His father Peter John Croucher was an engineer, and his mother Mary Florence (née Dunn) was a
legal secretary
A legal secretary is a particular category of worker within the legal profession. Background
In the practice of law in the United States, a legal secretary is a person who works in the legal profession, typically assisting lawyers. Legal secretari ...
. His parents re-emigrated back to the United Kingdom in 1971, when Croucher was five years old. He has a younger brother, Paul Stephen Croucher (b. 1970). He was educated at St Paulinus Church of England Primary School,
Crayford
Crayford is a town and Wards of the United Kingdom, electoral ward in South London, South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford. Crayford was in the Historic countie ...
, Kent, and then at the
City of London School
The City of London School, also known as CLS and City, is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school for Single-sex education, boys in the City of London, England, on the banks of the River Thames next to the Millennium Bridge, ...
, London, which he attended on a scholarship as a
chorister
A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...
at the
Temple Church
The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner Temple, Inner and Middle Temple, Middle Temple, London, Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their En ...
under choirmaster Sir
George Thalben-Ball
Sir George Thomas Thalben-Ball (18 June 1896 – 18 January 1987) was an Australian organist and composer who spent almost all his life in England.
Early life
George Thomas Ball (he later took the additional name of "Thalben") was born in Sydn ...
, appearing on two records made by the choir during his time there. He had previously sung in the St Paulinus Church choir, Crayford, and the Westminster Abbey Special Choir.
On leaving school at the age of 16, he attended Erith College (now
Bexley College
Bromley College of Further and Higher Education, trading as London South East Colleges (LSEC), is a large college of further education and higher education operating in south-east London, England. It is a partner college of six of the twelve sc ...
) for a year before enlisting in the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
at the age of 17, where he served for three years as a radio operator before taking an early discharge and returning to the UK to attend Merchant Navy College (formerly the
Thames Nautical Training College
The Thames Nautical Training College, as it is now called, is a school that trains officers for a seagoing career. It was, for over a hundred years, situated aboard ships named HMS ''Worcester''. London shipowners, marine insurance underwriters ...
),
Greenhithe Greenhithe may refer to:
*Greenhithe, Kent
Greenhithe is a village in the Borough of Dartford in Kent, England, and the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe. It is located east of Dartford and west of Gravesend.
Area
In the past, Gree ...
, Kent, qualifying as a
Radio Officer
A two-way radio is a radio transceiver (a radio that can both transmit and receive radio waves), which is used for bidirectional person-to-person voice communication with other users with similar radios, in contrast to a broadcast receiver, whi ...
in 1989. He first became involved in politics during this period, leading the ultimately unsuccessful campaign to prevent the closure of the college in 1989.
Working mainly for Dutch shipping companies, he volunteered for service in the First
Gulf War
, combatant2 =
, commander1 =
, commander2 =
, strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems
, page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...
and served on an ammunition transport as a Chief Radio Officer. During this period he continued his studies using distance learning, gaining a degree in electronics engineering, and also worked as a freelance journalist.
Political career
In 2001, he was employed by UKIP as its sole press officer and de facto
Director of Communications
Director of communications is a position in both the private and public sectors. A director of communications is responsible for managing and directing an organization's internal and external communications. Directors of communications supervis ...
, with him adopting the formal title in 2002 under new leader
Roger Knapman
Roger Maurice Knapman (born 20 February 1944) is a British politician who served as a Conservative MP before becoming Leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP).
Early life
The son of Harry Arthur Blackmore Knapman, a farmer, and Joan Margot n ...
as the party expanded. At the 2001 general election he contested the Dartford parliamentary constituency for UKIP, coming fourth with 989 votes.
In 2003, Croucher led the party's decision to contest local elections, writing its first local election manifesto – which still forms the backbone of the current manifesto. He himself stood in the staunchly Labour Joyce Green ward for
Dartford Borough Council
Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and
is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames Estuary, is Thurrock in ...
in
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
, polling 31% of the vote in the multiseat ward.
In 2004, he was in charge of media strategy for the party's 2004 European election campaign which saw the party break through from its existing three MEP seats to 12, gaining 16.8% of the national vote and beating the Liberal Democrats into fourth place. By focussing on large set-piece events with a central theme, and by carefully deploying high-profile candidates (including
Robert Kilroy-Silk
Robert Michael Kilroy-Silk (born Robert Michael Silk; 19 May 1942) is an English former politician and broadcaster. After a decade as a university lecturer, he served as a Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP) from 1974 to 1986. He left the ...
) and supporters, he generated significant media interest in the campaign, which represented a break from previous UKIP efforts. Throughout this period he worked closely with Clive Page (at that time a consultant, and later deputy director of communications), with external advice from PR guru
Max Clifford
Maxwell Frank Clifford (6 April 1943 – 10 December 2017) was an English publicist and convicted sex offender who was particularly associated with promoting " kiss and tell" stories in tabloid newspapers.
In December 2012, as part of Operat ...
, who had declared his support for UKIP early in the campaign. Page was a former Head of News for
ITV Tyne Tees
ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV television franchisee for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire.
Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from studios at a convert ...
television. Croucher also worked closely with UKIP Head of Strategy
Dick Morris
Richard Samuel Morris (born November 28, 1948) is an American author, commentator, and former political consultant.
A friend and advisor to Bill Clinton during his time as Governor of Arkansas and since his 1978 run, Morris became a political ...
, who joined the campaign team in late 2003.
Following the election, he was appointed editor of UKIPs internal magazine, ''Independence News'', updating the style and content of the magazine as its circulation reached a peak of 29,000. He remained editor until 2007.
Croucher stood down as director of communications in 2007, but returned in 2009 as a consultant for the European election campaign of that year. After UKIP came second, he was appointed as Head of Media for UKIP's new grouping in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...