Life Stories
Sir Nicholas Bonsor
Sir Nicholas Bonsor (1962 BA Jurisprudence) died on 21 March 2023 aged 80.
Sir Nicholas Bonsor was Conservative MP for Nantwich and then for Upminster. His time at Keble, where he read Law, was always very special to him, and he was proud of gaining a heavyweight boxing Blue while an undergraduate.
He was born in London in 1942 to Sir Bryan Cosmo Bonsor MC 3rd baronet, and the former Elizabeth Hambro. It would be four years till he met his father, who was fighting in Burma at the time. His early school days were at Spyway in Dorest, followed by Eton, which he loved, and where he excelled at rowing.
He joined Hambro’s bank in 1966 as a trainee, but his heart was not in this career; the following year he was called to the Bar at the Inner Temple practising until 1975. Here he honed his talent as an orator helped by being naturally articulate, and both swift and concise in grasping the nub of the issue.
But his real aim was to be a politician, which he saw as an honour and a service to his country. He fought Newcastle under Lyme, a Labour stronghold, in both 1974 elections; in 1979 he took on Nantwich for the Tories, entering Parliament during the premiership of Margaret Thatcher, and here he found his real vocation.
The 1983 boundary changes brought his time in Cheshire to a halt; his next constituency was Upminster, which he won for the Conservatives in 1987.
Here, his interests were varied from promoting a Bill to relax pub opening hours, to voting against the War Crimes Bill, opposing the poll tax, fighting the Labour party in their efforts to ban fox hunting, and eventually to his delight gaining the chair of the Defence Select Committee.
This was followed in 1995 by his appointment under John Major, to Minister of State at the Foreign Office – a job he relished. His time in Parliament ended at the General Election of 1997 when Tony Blair came into power.
He was a Member of Parliament for 20 years in total.
He retired from politics with dignity and farmed 600 acres in North Buckinghamshire where he spent happy times, and became involved in local issues. Crucially, he played an active and significant part in bringing up the five children he had with his wife Nadine, nee Lampson, who he had married in 1969.
His views were often controversial. Undeterred he remained loyal to his instincts and true to his principles, always happy to defend his opinions and agree to differ with his opponents. His later years were fulfilled by pursuing many interests and delighting in his increasing number of grandchildren. His zest for life, many enthusiasms, love of history and an ability for laughter all kept him content during his last decades.
Kindly provided by his wife Nadine Bonsor