Laura Miranda Grimond, Baroness Grimond (''née'' Bonham-Carter; 13 October 1918 – 15 February 1994) was a British

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

politician, and the wife of party leader

Jo Grimond Joseph Grimond, Baron Grimond, (; 29 July 1913 – 24 October 1993), known as Jo Grimond, was a British politician, leader of the Liberal Party for eleven years from 1956 to 1967 and again briefly on an interim basis in 1976. Grimond was a lo ...

Background

She was born in

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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 ...

, the daughter of Sir Maurice Bonham Carter and Liberal politician Violet Asquith. She was the granddaughter of Liberal Prime Minister,

H. H. Asquith Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928), generally known as H. H. Asquith, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom f ...

. She was also an elder sister of

Mark Bonham Carter Mark Raymond Bonham Carter, Baron Bonham-Carter (11 February 1922 – 4 September 1994) was an English publisher and politician. He was created a life peer in 1986. Early life He was the son of the Liberal activists Sir Maurice Bonham-Cart ...

, who was the Liberal victor of the 1958 by-election at Torrington and

Raymond Bonham Carter Raymond Henry Bonham Carter (19 June 1929 – 17 January 2004) was a British banker and a member of the prominent Bonham Carter family. Early life He was born in Paddington, London, to Sir Maurice Bonham-Carter (1880–1960), a politician and ...

, who was the father of actress

Helena Bonham Carter Helena Bonham Carter (born 26 May 1966) is an English actress. Known for her roles in blockbusters and independent films, particularly period dramas, she has received various awards and nominations, including a British Academy Film Award a ...

. In 1938, she married

St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster a ...

. The couple had four children: * (Joseph) Andrew Grimond (26 March 1939 – 23 March 1966), a sub-editor of ''

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'', lived in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

until his suicide at the age of 26. * Grizelda "Gelda" (Jane) Grimond (1942–2017), who had a daughter Katherine (born 1973) by the film and stage director

Tony Richardson Cecil Antonio "Tony" Richardson (5 June 1928 – 14 November 1991) was an English theatre and film director and producer whose career spanned five decades. In 1964, he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film ''Tom Jones (1963 film ...

. * John (Jasper) Grimond (born October 1946), a former foreign editor of ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

'' as Johnny Grimond, now writer at large for the publication, who in 1973 married Kate Fleming (born 1946), elder daughter of the writer Peter Fleming and actress

Celia Johnson Dame Celia Elizabeth Johnson, (18 December 1908 – 26 April 1982) was an English actress, whose career included stage, television and film. She is especially known for her roles in the films ''In Which We Serve'' (1942), ''This Happy Bree ...

, and has three children with her. He is the main author of ''The Economist Style Guide'' * (Thomas) Magnus Grimond (born 13 June 1959), journalist and financial correspondent, married to travel author Laura Grimond (née Raison), and has four children.

Political career

Laura Grimond was Liberal candidate for the West Aberdeenshire division at the 1970 General Election. West Aberdeenshire was a seat the Liberals had gained from the Conservatives at the previous general election. The Liberal victor James Davidson decided not to defend his seat and instead campaigned for Laura Grimond. Her prospects of holding the seat lessened when a SNP candidate intervened in the contest. However ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', the Conservative leaning national newspaper made a point of endorsing her by name; through "an invocation of 'the Asquith ideal', which called strenuously for more Liberal MPs and in particular for Mrs Laura Grimond." In a difficult election for the Liberal Party nationwide, the Conservatives regained the seat, beating her by over 5,000 votes. She did not stand for parliament again. She continued to be active for the Liberal Party at a national level; From 1983 to 1985 she was President of the

Women's Liberal Federation The Women's Liberal Federation was an organisation that was part of the Liberal Party in the United Kingdom. History The Women's Liberal Federation (WLF) was formed on the initiative of Sophia Fry, who in 1886 called a meeting at her house of fi ...

. Three times during the mid 1980s she appeared as a party spokesperson on BBC's Question Time. She was also politically active locally in Orkney; She was a Councillor for

Firth Firth is a word in the English and Scots languages used to denote various coastal waters in the United Kingdom, predominantly within Scotland. In the Northern Isles, it more usually refers to a smaller inlet. It is linguistically cognate to ''fj ...

& Harray and Chairman of

Orkney Islands Council The Orkney Islands Council ( gd, Comhairle Eileanan Arcaibh), is the local authority for Orkney, Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes o ...

's Housing Committee.

Electoral record

Other

In 1968 Laura Grimond was a co-founder of the

Orkney Heritage Society The Orkney Heritage Society in Orkney, Scotland, is a nonprofit organisation founded in 1968. It promotes "the beauty, history and character of Orkney" as well as "high standards of architecture and planning" in Orkney. It organizes conferences a ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grimond, Laura Miranda 1918 births 1994 deaths Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Asquith family British baronesses Spouses of life peers Daughters of life peers Laura Scottish Liberal Party councillors Councillors in Orkney People from Orkney Women councillors in Scotland