JEFFREY ARCHER
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Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is a best-selling
English author and former politician whose political career ended with his conviction and subsequent imprisonment (2001–03) for perjury and perverting the course of justice.
He has since repaid his debt to society and in our opinion was penalized
more than most, because any prison sentence, no matter how big or small
could not compare to the scandal that rocked his life.
Jeffrey Archer's portrait
Jeffrey Howard Archer was born in the City of
London Maternity Hospital. He was two weeks old when his family moved to the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, where he spent most of his early life. He has an older brother born out of wedlock, also originally called Jeffrey, who was put up for adoption at an early age. The brother assumed the name David Brown and only discovered his relationship to Archer in 1980, even though Archer already apparently knew this, according to the journalist Michael Crick. His father, William (died
1956), was sixty-four when Archer was born. In 1951, he won a scholarship to Wellington School, in Somerset (not to be confused with the public
school Wellington College, which is possible from the ambiguous biography in Archer's earlier books). At this time his mother, Lola, contributed a column "Over the teacups" to the local press in Weston-super-Mare and wrote about the adventures of her son 'Tuppence'; this caused Archer to be the victim of bullying while at Wellington
School. Oxford
Archer studied for three years, gaining an academic qualification in teaching awarded by the Oxford
University Department for Continuing Education. The course was based at Brasenose College, Oxford, although Archer was never registered as an undergraduate student of the College. There have been claims that Archer provided false evidence of his academic qualifications, for instance the apparent citing of an American institution which was actually a bodybuilding club, in gaining admission to the
course. It is also alleged that he provided false statements about three non-existent A level passes and a US
degree. His website includes references to his Oxford 'Principal', yet omits that he was not a full undergraduate at
Oxford.
Jeffrey Archer's book Scorpion Trail
Charity fundraising
After leaving Oxford, he continued as a charity fundraiser, working for the National Birthday Trust, a medical charity. He also began a career in politics, serving as a Conservative councillor on the Greater London Council during 1967–70. Writing career
His first book, Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less, was picked up by the literary agent Deborah Owen and published first in the US, then eventually in Britain in the Autumn of 1976. The book was an instant success and Archer avoided bankruptcy, never being legally declared bankrupt. A BBC Television adaptation of the book was broadcast in 1990, and a radio adaptation was aired on BBC Radio 4 in the early 1980s.
Member of ParliamentAt 29, he was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lincolnshire constituency of Louth, holding the seat for the Conservative Party in a by-election on 4 December 1969. Archer beat Ian Gow to the selection after winning over a substantial proportion of younger members at the selection meeting. The national party had concerns about Archer's selection, but these were dismissed by the local Conservative association after representatives made a journey to party headquarters to discuss the matter. Archer's campaign colour was a dayglo orange/pink with a blue arrow; the political parties in Lincolnshire had not yet abandoned local colours, which were different from the party national colours.
Return to politics: Deputy party chairman
Archer's political career revived once he became known for his novels and as a popular speaker among the Conservative grassroots. He was made deputy chairman of the
Conservative Party by Margaret Thatcher in September 1985. Norman Tebbit, party chairman, had misgivings over the appointment, as did other prominent members of the party, including William Whitelaw and Ted Heath. During his tenure as deputy chairman, Archer was responsible for a number of embarrassing moments, including his statement, made during a live radio interview, that many young, unemployed people were simply unwilling to find work. At the time of Archer's comment, unemployment in the UK stood at a record 3.4 million. Archer was later forced to apologise for the remark, suggesting that his words had been "taken out of context". Daily Star libel case
Compounding on this story, the Daily Star alleged that Archer had paid
for sex with
Coghlan. Archer responded by suing the Daily Star. The case came to court in July 1987. Explaining the payment to Coghlan as the action of a philanthropist rather than that of a guilty man, Archer won the case and was awarded £500,000 damages. Archer stated he would donate the money to charity. This case would ultimately result in Archer's final exit from front-line politics some years later. Kurdish charity and peerage
When Saddam Hussein suppressed Kurdish uprisings in 1991, Archer, with the Red Cross, set up the charity Simple Truth, a fundraising campaign on behalf of the
Kurds." In May 1991, Archer organised a charity pop concert, starring
Rod Stewart, Paul Simon, Sting and Gloria Estefan, who all performed free. Archer claimed that his charity had raised £57,042,000, though it was later revealed that only £3 million came from the Simple Truth concert and appeal, the rest from aid projects sponsored by the British and other governments, with significant amounts pledged before the
concert. The charity would later result in further controversy. Political statements in 1990s
In a speech at the 1993 Conservative conference, Archer urged then Home Secretary Michael Howard, to "Stand and deliver," saying: "Michael, I am sick and tired of being told by old people that they are frightened to open the door, they're frightened to go out at night, frightened to use the parks and byways where their parents and grandparents walked with freedom ... We say to you: stand and deliver!". He then attacked violent films and urged tougher prison conditions to prevent criminals from re-offending. He criticised the role of "do-gooders" and finished off the speech by denouncing the opposition party's law and order
policies. On Question Time in February 1994, Archer stated that 18 should be the age of consent for homosexuality, as opposed to 21, which it was at the time. Archer has also consistently been an opponent of a return to capital punishment. Allegations of insider dealings
In January 1994, Mary Archer, then a director of Anglia Television, attended a directors' meeting at which an impending takeover of Anglia Television by MAI, which owned Meridian Broadcasting, was
discussed. The following day, Jeffrey Archer bought 50,000 shares in Anglia Television, acting on behalf of a friend, Broosk
Saib. Shortly after this, it was announced publicly that Anglia Television would be taken over by MAI. As a result the shares jumped in value, whereupon Archer sold them on behalf of his friend for a profit of £77,219. The arrangements he made with the stockbrokers meant he did not have to pay at the time of buying the
shares. London mayoral candidacy and perjury trial
In 1999, Archer had been selected by the Conservative Party as candidate for the London mayoral election of 2000, when, on 21 November, the News of the World published allegations that he had committed perjury in his 1987 libel case. Archer withdrew his candidacy the following
day. Trial
On 26 September 2000, he was charged with perjury and perverting the course of justice during the 1987 libel
trial. Simultaneously, Archer starred in a production of his courtroom play The Accused, staged at London's Theatre
Royal Haymarket. The play concerned the court trial of an alleged murderer and assigned the role of jury to the audience, which would vote on the guilt of Archer's character at the end of each
performance.
Jail
Archer was sent to Belmarsh Prison, a Category "A"
prison, but was moved to Wayland Prison, a Category "C" prison in Norfolk on 9 August 2001. Despite automatically qualifying as a category "D" prisoner given it was a first conviction and he did not pose serious risk of harm to the public, his status as such was suspended pending a police investigation into allegations about his Kurdish charity. He was then transferred to North Sea Camp, an open prison, in October 2001. From there he was let out to work at the Theatre Royal in Lincoln, and was allowed occasional home visits. Media reports claimed he had been abusing this privilege by attending lunches with friends, including former Education Secretary Gillian Shephard and in September 2002 he was transferred to a Category "B" prison, Lincoln, for a month, before returning to a Category "D" prison, Hollesley Bay in Suffolk. Kurdish aid controversy
In July 2001, shortly after being jailed for perjury, Archer's name was again shrouded in controversy, when Scotland Yard began investigating allegations that millions of pounds had disappeared from Archer's Kurdish charity. In 1991, Archer had claimed to have raised £57,042,000. In 1992, the Kurdish Disaster Fund had written to Archer, complaining: "You must be concerned that the Kurdish refugees have seen hardly any of the huge sums raised in the west in their name." Kurdish groups claimed little more than £250,000 had been received by groups in Iraq. Archer then had gone to Iraq on a fact-finding mission, where his chant of "Long Live Kurdistan" was mis-translated as "Bastard, Devilish Kurdistan."
Recent years
Many of Archer's friends remained loyal. He and Lady Archer were guests at the memorial service for Norris McWhirter at Saint Martin-in-the-Fields on Thursday 7 October 2004 where they sat in the same pew as Gregory Lauder-Frost, the former head of the Conservative Monday Club, and in front of Lady
Thatcher, who embraced Lady
Archer. Personal life
In 1979, Archer purchased the Old Vicarage, Grantchester, a house associated with the poet Rupert Brooke. He also began to hold shepherd's pie and Krug parties for prominent people at his London apartment, which overlooks the Houses of
Parliament.
Jeffrey Archer's Shadow Hunter
Archer in fiction
Archer was satirically portrayed as a misunderstood secret agent, saviour of Britain and mankind and "overall thoroughly good chap", by actor Damian Lewis in the BBC drama Jeffrey Archer: The Truth
(2002), which received strong reviews. Script writer Guy Jenkin explained that "my Jeffrey Archer is the man who has frequently saved Britain over the last 30 years. He's beloved of all
women he comes across, all men, all
dogs – he's a superhero".
Prison Diary Extract
List of works
Kane and Abel seriesShall We Tell the President? (1977) Other novels
Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1976) Plays
Beyond Reasonable Doubt (1987) Short stories/Collections
A Quiver Full of Arrows (1980) For children
The First Miracle (1980) Clifton Chronicles
Only Time Will Tell (2011)
Not for release in the UK until after the subject's Appeal in the European Court of Human Rights is heard, application lodged March of 2012
LINKS:
The Papal Visit, Official blog, 20 September 2010 Jeffrey Archer: The next chapter The Daily Telegraph, 2 March 2008 He lied his way to the top Daily Telegraph Author of his own Demise http://sgp1.paddington.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/feature_stories/ Rise and Fall of Jeffrey Archer The Guardian The rise and fall of Jeffrey Archer March 2010. Jeffrey Archer the extraordinary story of his downfall Courtnewsuk.co.uk Mendacious, ambitious, generous and naive Mendacious, ambitious, generous and naive The Guardian The Rise and Fall of Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Archer interview with Willie & JT, RadioLIVE Lord Archer answers your questions Archer marriage under spotlight Star demands £2.2m from Archer Archer fraud allegations: the simple truth Archer's share deal under scrutiny again Archer in fury as DTI questions TV shares deal again Timeline: Stranger than fiction Ted Francis: Archer whistleblower Disgraced Archer jettisoned by Tories Review – The Accused Curtain Up New celeb jail visitor for Archer Sunday Mirror How We Met: Barry Humprhies & Jeffrey Archer So that's what he was up to when he wasn't out for lunch Archer settles £1.8m libel debt with newspaper MCC gives Archer out – for seven years London 2010. Lord Archer freed from prison". London: BBC. 22 September 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3082627.stm. Disgraced Archer may lose peerage". London: Guardian Archer faces 'missing aid' probe BBC (London). 23 July 2001 http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/ Independent New Archer link to coup plot alleged jailed mercenary Simon Mann provides vidence’ of peer’s role in failed coup Archer 'may vote in Lords again'". London: BBC. 26 February 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4752758.stm. Jeffrey Archer: The Truth – BBC Drama Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom Contributions in Parliament at Hansard 1803–2005 Voting record at PublicWhip.org Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou.com Profile at BBC News Democracy Live Jeffrey Archer on Charlie Rose Jeffrey Archer at the Internet Movie Database Jeffrey Archer collected news and commentary at The Guardian Jeffrey Archer collected news and commentary at The New York Times In Depth: Archer Trial at BBC News Works by or about Jeffrey Archer in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
David Cameron visits his chum, checking out the accommodation should his stint as PM be held to be criminal: "Hmmm, I'll have the top bunk."
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