Sir Anthony George Berry (12 February 1925 – 12 October 1984)
/ref> was a British

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

politician. He served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Enfield Southgate and a

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...

's government. Berry served as an MP for twenty years and was still in office when killed in the

Brighton hotel bombing On 12 October 1984 the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) attempted to assassinate members of the British government, including the prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England. Five people were killed, in ...

of 1984 by the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

Early life

Born in Eton,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, Berry was the sixth and youngest son of the newspaper magnate

Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley James Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley, GBE (7 May 1883 – 6 February 1968) was a Welsh colliery owner and newspaper publisher. Background Berry was born the son of John Mathias and Mary Ann (''née'' Rowe) Berry, of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales ...

, and his wife Mary Holmes. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, graduating MA, and served as a Lieutenant in the

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WLSH GDS; ), part of the Guards and Parachute Division, Guards Division, is one of the Foot guards, Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the World War I, First ...

from 1943 to 1947."Berry, Hon. Sir Anthony George", ''

Who Was Who ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It has been published annually in the form of a hardback book since 1849, and has been published online since 1999. It has also been published on CD-ROM. It lists, and gives information on, people from around ...

'', online edition published 1 December 2007, accessed 12 October 2024

Career

After resigning his commission in the Guards, Berry went into journalism. He was an Assistant Editor of ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' from 1952 to 1954, when he was appointed as Editor of the ''

Sunday Chronicle The ''Sunday Chronicle'' was a newspaper in the United Kingdom, published from 1885 to 1955. The newspaper was founded in Manchester by Edward Hulton in August 1885. He was known for his sporting coverage, already publishing the '' Sporting C ...

''. In 1962, Berry was appointed as

High Sheriff of Glamorgan This page is a list of High Sheriffs of Glamorgan. Sheriffs of Glamorgan served under and were answerable to the independent Lords of Glamorgan until that lordship was merged into the crown. This is in contrast to sheriffs of the English shires w ...

. Standing as a Conservative, he was elected as Member of Parliament for Southgate (later Enfield Southgate) at the 1964 general election, and served in Margaret Thatcher's government after the Conservatives won the 1979 general election. He was

Vice-Chamberlain of the Household The Vice-Chamberlain of the Household is a member of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The officeholder is usually a senior government whip in the British House of Commons ranking third or fourth after the Chief Whip and ...

between 1979 and 1981, then as

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of ...

from 1981 to 1983, and was appointed

Treasurer of the Household The Treasurer of the Household is a member of the Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The position is usually held by one of the government deputy Chief ...

in 1983. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in December 1983.

Death

On 12 October 1984, Berry was murdered in the

, when a bomb was planted in the Grand Brighton Hotel during the Conservative Party Conference. He was 59. He was survived by his wife, Lady Berry, who was injured in the blast. His death occurred three days before the 20th anniversary of his first election to Parliament in 1964. Berry's death in office triggered a by-election in Enfield Southgate, which was won by future Cabinet minister

Michael Portillo Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo ( ; born 26 May 1953) is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician. His broadcast series include railway documentaries such as ''Great British Railway Jou ...

. In September 1986, Patrick Magee, who carried out the bombing, received eight life sentences, but was released from prison in 1999 under the terms of the

Good Friday Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) or Belfast Agreement ( or ; or ) is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April (Good Friday) 1998 that ended most of the violence of the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland since the la ...

. Since Magee's release, Berry's daughter, Jo Berry, has received attention for her series of controversial meetings with the Brighton bomber, as part of her quest to come to terms with the bombing and, in her own words, "to bring something positive out of it". Some of their discussions were filmed for an ''Everyman'' programme, shown on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

in December 2001. She has received some criticism from other families of IRA victims for these meetings. A ceremony was held in Berry's Enfield Southgate constituency on 12 October 2009, the 25th anniversary of the bombing, at which his widow (wife of Lord Donoughue) and her daughter Sasha unveiled a plaque in his honour at the newly renamed Sir Anthony Berry House in Chaseville Parade,

Winchmore Hill Winchmore Hill is a suburb and electoral ward in the London Borough of Enfield, north London, England, in the N postcode area, N21 postal district. The Winchmore Hill conservation area serves as the focal point of the district. Geographically, ...

Personal life

In 1954, at

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, Berry married firstly Mary Cynthia Roche (1934–2023), a daughter of Maurice Roche, 4th Baron Fermoy. Mary's sister,

Frances Shand Kydd Frances Ruth Shand Kydd (previously Spencer, ''née'' Roche; 20 January 1936 – 3 June 2004) was the mother of Diana, Princess of Wales. She was the maternal grandmother of William, Prince of Wales and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, respectively ...

, married

John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer Edward John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer (24 January 192429 March 1992), styled Viscount Althorp until June 1975, was a British peer, military officer, and courtier. He was the father of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the maternal grandfather of W ...

, and so Berry was an uncle of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

. Berry and his wife Mary had four children: Alexandra Mary (born 1955), Antonia Ruth and Joanna Cynthia (Jo) (twins, born 1957), and Edward Anthony Morys (born 1960). They divorced in 1966. He then married Sarah Clifford-Turner at Chelsea in 1966 and had two more children: George (born 1967), and Sasha Jane (born 1969). Shortly before his death, Berry was being prosecuted for drink-driving and reckless driving after he allegedly drove at two police officers who were attempting to stop his vehicle, injuring one of them. He narrowly missed two pedestrians.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry, Anthony 1925 births 1984 deaths 1984 murders in the United Kingdom Assassinated English politicians English terrorism victims Younger sons of viscounts Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies High sheriffs of Glamorgan Deaths by improvised explosive device in England People educated at Eton College People from Eton, Berkshire People killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army People murdered in England Presidents of the Oxford University Conservative Association Terrorism deaths in England UK MPs 1964–1966 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1983–1987 Treasurers of the Household Knights Bachelor Anthony Berry Assassinated British MPs English murder victims European politicians assassinated in the 1980s Assassinated national legislators Politicians assassinated in 1984 Deaths by explosive device