The 1924 Oxford by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 5 June 1924 for the British House of Commons constituency of

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 ...

Vacancy

The seat had become vacant when the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

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 o ...

(MP)

Frank Gray Francis Tierney Gray (born 27 October 1954) is a Scottish football manager and former player. He played for Leeds United, Nottingham Forest, Sunderland and Darlington, while he also represented Scotland 32 times. Gray has managed Darlington, ...

was unseated on petition on 14 May, after his agent had falsified the account for his expenses at the 1923 election. Gray had held the seat since the 1922 election.

Electoral history

The result of the last General Election; 1924_Frank_Gray

Candidates

*On 16 May, the Oxford Liberal Association immediately invited the 52-year-old

C.B. Fry Charles Burgess Fry (25 April 1872 – 7 September 1956) was an English sportsman, teacher, writer, editor and publisher, who is best remembered for his career as a cricketer. John Arlott described him with the words: "Charles Fry could b ...

, to defend the seat. He had been an all-round

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

sman who was best known as an England cricketer. Fry had contested Brighton in the 1922 election and the neighbouring seat of

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 Oxfordshir ...

in the 1923 election. *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 ...

selected the 35-year-old Robert Bourne, who had been a member of the New College boat which won silver in the men’s eights at the

1912 Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, b ...

. *The Labour Party who had not fielded a candidate before, selected the 26-year-old

Kenneth Lindsay Kenneth Martin Lindsay (16 September 1897 – 4 March 1991) was a Labour Party politician from the United Kingdom who joined the breakaway National Labour group. He was the final Member of Parliament to be elected by the single transferable vo ...

, recently down from

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

and contesting his first Parliamentary election. He had been President of the

Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest ...

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, ...

1922.

Campaign

All three candidates were former

Oxford Blues ''Oxford Blues'' is a 1984 British comedy-drama sports film written and directed by Robert Boris and starring Rob Lowe, Ally Sheedy and Amanda Pays. It is a remake of the 1938 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film ''A Yank at Oxford'' and was Lowe's first ...

enabling the popular press to dub the campaign 'The Battle of the Blues'. Former Liberal MP Frank Gray, despite being barred from standing, was still very popular in the constituency and he was active in support of Fry throughout the campaign. During the campaign Fry advocated the introduction of equal opportunities for women, the imposition of responsibilities on the fathers of illegitimate children and the introduction of a tax system that would give privacy and independence to married women.CB Fry by Iain Wilton,(1999) p325.

Result

The result was a gain for the Conservatives.

Aftermath

Bourne would hold the seat at the following General Election;

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oxford By-Election, 1924 1924 elections in the United Kingdom Elections in Oxford 1924 in England June 1924 events By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Oxfordshire constituencies 20th century in Oxford