Gerald William Reynolds (17 July 1927 – 7 June 1969) was a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Islington North from 1958 until his death.
Gerry Reynolds | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Islington North | |
| In office 15 May 1958 – 7 June 1969 | |
| Preceded by | Wilfred Fienburgh |
| Succeeded by | Michael O'Halloran |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gerald William Reynolds 17 July 1927 Brentford, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 7 June 1969 (aged 41) London, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse |
Dorothy Budd (m. 1949) |
| Children | 2 |
Background
editReynolds was born Brentford, Middlesex, in 1927, and was educated in Acton.[1][2] He was diagnosed with kidney disease when he was fourteen, and at the time was given only three months to live.[2] He went on to attend the Ealing School of Art.[2]
Political career
editReynolds began his political career on the Acton Borough Council, to which he was elected in 1949.[2] He served as mayor of Acton from 1961 to 1962.[2] He was elected as the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Islington North in a 1958 by-election following the early death of the sitting MP Wilfred Fienburgh, who was killed in a car crash at the age of 38.[2] He was re-elected the following year at the 1959 general election, and at the next two general elections in the constituency.[2]
In the British Government of the 1960s he was Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Army from 1964 to 1965, then for two years he was the Minister of Defence (Army).[2] From 1967 to 1969 he held the office of Minister of Defence (Administration) at the Ministry of Defence.[3]
Personal life and death
editReynolds married Dorothy Budd in 1949, and they had two daughters.[2]
Reynolds died from cancer at a London hospital on 7 June 1969, at the age of 41.[2][4] Few in parliament knew he was ill, and so his death came as a considerable shock; he had previously been considered a "rising star" in Westminster, and was being talked of as a potential future prime minister.[2][5]
Publications
editThe Night the Police Went on Strike, by Reynolds, G.W. & Judge, A. (Pub. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 1968).
References
edit- ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Mr Gerald Reynolds". The Times. 9 June 1969. p. 10.
- ^ "Newsreel of Reynolds meeting British Army soldiers". Pathe News. 1968 – via YouTube.
- ^ "6 Labour Seats Vacant". The Daily Telegraph. 9 June 1969. p. 1. Retrieved 8 December 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ 'Comrade Corbyn' by Ross Prince (Pub. Biteback Publishing, 2016), Chapter 6.