Gerald Teasdale Fowler (1 January 1935 – 1 May 1993), commonly known as Gerry Fowler, was a British Labour Party politician and university academic. Fowler was the son of James A. Fowler (died 1964) of

Long Buckby Long Buckby is a large village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. In 2020 the parish of Long Buckby, which includes the hamlet of Long Buckby Wharf, was estimated to have a population of 4,303. Long Buckby is hill top village, l ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, and his wife Alfreda.His death notice. Fowler was educated at

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

Grammar School A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

(where he was a friend of

Bernard Donoughue Bernard Donoughue, Baron Donoughue (born 8 September 1934) is a Labour Party (UK), British Labour Party politician, academic, businessman and author.Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, situated on Turl Street in central Oxford. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Fleming, the ...

, and

Frankfurt University Goethe University (german: link=no, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main) is a university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealt ...

. He was a councillor on

Oxford City Council Oxford City Council is the lower-tier local government authority for the city of Oxford in England, providing such services as leisure centres and parking. Social Services, Education and Highways services (amongst others) are provided by Oxfo ...

1960–64, branch secretary of the

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

branch of

ASSET In financial accountancy, financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value ...

and a visiting lecturer at Lancaster University 1964–1966. Fowler contested

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...

at the 1964 general election. At the 1966 general election, he was elected as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for the marginal seat of

The Wrekin The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some five miles (8 km) west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of 4 ...

, with a majority of 846 votes and poster slogan of "follow Fowler" but lost it at the 1970 election to the Conservative candidate Anthony ('Tony') Trafford. He regained his seat at the next opportunity in

February 1974 The following events occurred in February 1974: February 1, 1974 (Friday) *Joelma fire, A fire killed 177 people and injured 293 others in the 23-story Joelma Building at São Paulo in Brazil. Another 11 later died of their injuries. The bl ...

and held it in October 1974. However, at the 1979 general election he was defeated again, this time by the

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 i ...

Warren Hawksley Philip Warren Hawksley (10 March 1943 – 9 March 2018) was a British Conservative politician, who served as MP for The Wrekin and Halesowen and Stourbridge. Early life Hawksley was born at Oswestry, Shropshire, son of Bradshaw Warren Hawks ...

. After two years as a Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Technology, Fowler was the Minister of State for Education and Science from 1969 to 1970. He was there again for spells in 1974 and 1976, in between which times he was Minister of State for the Privy Council Office from 1974 to 1976. Fowler, who lived in

Wellington, Shropshire Wellington is a market town in Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire, England. It is situated 4 miles (6 km) northwest of central Telford and 12 miles (19 km) east of Shrewsbury. The summit of The Wrekin lies 3 miles southwest of the town. The ...

Address given as in St Chad's Close, Wellington. within his constituency, also served in local government in the area as a member of

Wrekin District Council Telford and Wrekin is a borough and unitary authority in Shropshire, England. In 1974, a non-metropolitan district of Shropshire was created called The Wrekin. In 1998, the district became a unitary authority and was renamed "Telford and Wrekin", ...

, from 1973 to 1976, serving as the council's leader in 1973–74, and also sat in

Shropshire County Council Shropshire County Council was the county council of the non-metropolitan county of Shropshire in England. History The Council came into its powers under the Local Government Act 1888 on 1 April 1889 and was known as Salop County Council from for ...

from 1979 to 1985. Fowler had an extensive career in university education outside parliament. He was a lecturer in classics at

Hertford College, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...

, from 1963 to 1966 and dean of the college until he entered the House of Commons. He was assistant director of

Huddersfield Polytechnic , mottoeng = Thus not for you alone , established = 1825 – Huddersfield Science and Mechanics' Institute1992 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £2.47 million (2015) , chancellor = George W. Buckley , vice_chancell ...

from 1970 to 1972, visiting professor at the

University of Strathclyde The University of Strathclyde ( gd, Oilthigh Shrath Chluaidh) is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, having received its royal chart ...

from 1970 to 1974, professor of educational studies at the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...

from 1972 to 1974, associate professor of government at

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June 1 ...

from 1977 to 1980, then deputy director of Preston Polytechnic from 1980 to 1981. Ultimately he was rector of the

Polytechnic of East London , mottoeng = Knowledge and the fulfilment of vows , established = 1898 – West Ham Technical Institute1952 – West Ham College of Technology1970 – North East London Polytechnic1989 – Polytechnic of East London ...

from 1982 to 1992. He was twice married. Firstly in 1968 to Julie, daughter of Wilfrid Brining of

Slough Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...

, and secondly in 1982 to Lorna, daughter of William Lloyd, of

Preston, Lancashire Preston () is a city on the north bank of the River Ribble in Lancashire, England. The city is the administrative centre of the county of Lancashire and the wider City of Preston local government district. Preston and its surrounding distri ...

.The first marriage is not mentioned in Who's Who of that year. Fowler died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

at his home in

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, on 1 May (coincidentally

Labour Day Labour Day ('' Labor Day'' in the United States) is an annual holiday to celebrate the achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for ...

) 1993 aged 58, and was cremated at

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...

References

*''Times Guide to the House of Commons 1979'' *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Gerald 1935 births 1993 deaths Academics of Brunel University London Academics of the Open University Academics of the University of Central Lancashire Academics of the University of East London Academics of the University of Huddersfield Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford Fellows of Hertford College, Oxford Goethe University Frankfurt alumni Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of Oxford City Council Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for constituencies in Shropshire Ministers in the Wilson governments, 1964–1970 People from Long Buckby UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979