Richard Clitherow (18 January 1902 – 3 June 1947) was a Labour Party politician in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, Clitherow was educated at the

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

, qualifying as a doctor and pharmacist. From 1919 until 1922, he served in the North West Mounted Police in Canada, then returned to the UK and served in the Liverpool City Police Force. In 1927, he moved to the United States to work as a pharmacist, then did the same job in China, but returned again to Liverpool in 1930. Clitherow joined the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, and won election to

Liverpool City Council Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Mayor ...

in 1937. However, in 1943, he defected to the Labour Party. 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 ...

(MP) for Liverpool Edge Hill at the 1945 general election, but died in office in 1947, aged 45. He had been "run down and jaded", taking an overdose of seven

barbitone Barbital (or barbitone), marketed under the brand names Veronal for the pure acid and Medinal for the sodium salt, was the first commercially available barbiturate. It was used as a sleeping aid (hypnotic) from 1903 until the mid-1950s. The chemic ...

tablets, which was described by the pathologist as a "bold dose". A verdict of accidental death was recorded at the inquest.''The Times'', 19 June 1947, p. 2. After his death, the by-election for his seat was won by Labour's

Arthur Irvine Sir Arthur James Irvine, QC PC (14 July 1909 – 15 December 1978) was a British barrister and politician. He was the Labour MP for Liverpool Edge Hill from the 1947 by-election until he died aged 69. Irvine was educated at Edinburgh A ...

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* 1902 births 1947 deaths Accidental deaths in England Alumni of the University of Liverpool Barbiturates-related deaths British expatriates in Canada British expatriates in China British expatriates in the United States 20th-century British medical doctors British pharmacists British police officers Conservative Party (UK) councillors in Liverpool Labour Party (UK) councillors in Liverpool Drug-related deaths in England Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Liverpool constituencies Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers UK MPs 1945–1950 {{England-Labour-UK-MP-stub