Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English author and former politician.

Alongside his literary work, Archer was a Member of Parliament A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a parliament. In many countries the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a unique title, such as senate, and thus also have unique titles for its members, such as senators. Members of parliament tend to form parliamentary parties with members (1969/74), deputy chairman of the Conservative Party The Conservative and Unionist Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. Founded in its present form during the early 19th century, it has since been the principal centre-right party in the UK (1985/86) and was made a life peer in 1992. Having suffered several controversies, his political career ended with his conviction and subsequent imprisonment (2001–2003) for perjury Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding. That is, the witness falsely promises to tell the truth about matters which affect the outcome of the case. For example, it is not considered perjury and perverting the course of justice Perverting the course of justice, in English, Canadian , and Irish law, is a criminal offence in which someone prevents justice from being served on himself or on another party. It is a common law offence carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Contents

Early life

Background

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 Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort town and civil parish in North Somerset, part of the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, 18 miles south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Oldmixon, West Wick and, Somerset, where he spent most of his early life. His father, William, was sixty-four when Archer was born. He died when Archer was fifteen. 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.[1]

After Archer left school passing O-levels The O-Level is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education (GCE). It was introduced as part of British educational reform in the 1950s alongside the more in-depth and academically rigorous A-Level (Advanced Level). England, Wales and Northern Ireland replaced O-Levels with GCSE exams in 1988. The in English Literature, Art, and History, he worked in a number of jobs, including training with the army and for the police. This lasted only for a few months, but he fared better as a Physical Education teacher; first at Vicar's Hill, a Prep School In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools. While many prep schools prepare their students for entry to a in Hampshire Today, Hampshire is a popular holiday area. Its tourist attractions include many seaside resorts, the motor museum at Beaulieu, with national parks in both New Forest and the South Downs. Hampshire has a long maritime history and two of England's largest ports, Southampton and Portsmouth, lie on its coast. The county is famed as home of such, and later at the more prestigious independent school An independent school in the United Kingdom is a school that is not financed by taxpayers or through the taxation system by local or national government, and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so not subject to the conditions of "maintained status& Dover College Dover College is a co-educational independent school in Dover, Kent, England. It was founded in 1871, and takes both day pupils and boarders in Kent. As a teacher he was popular with pupils and reported by some to have had good motivational skills.

Oxford

Archer studied for three years, gaining an academic qualification in teaching Education in the largest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual. In its technical sense, education is the process by which society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills and values from one generation to another awarded by the Oxford Department for Education. The course was based at Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College, originally Brazen Nose College , is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. As of 2006, it has an estimated financial endowment of £98m, 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.[1][2] . It is also alleged that he provided false statements about three non-existent A level passes and a US degree [3]. His website includes references to his Oxford 'Principal', yet omits that he was not a full undergraduate at Oxford.[4]

While in Oxford Oxford (pronounced /ˈɒksfərd/ ) is a city, and the county town of Oxfordshire, in South East England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 151,000 living within the district boundary. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through Oxford and meet south of the city centre. For a distance he was successful in athletics, competing in sprinting and hurdling. It is unclear whether he was in fact eligible to compete in Varsity matches, not being a member of the College [5] . Television coverage survives of him making false starts in a 1964 sprint race, but despite the rules Archer was not disqualified. He gained a blue in athletics and went on to run for England once and also competed for Great Britain once. He also raised money for the then little-known charity Oxfam Oxfam International is a confederation of 14 organisations working with over 3,000 partners in around 100 countries to find lasting solutions to poverty and injustice, obtaining the support of The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. From 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney (bass guitar, vocals), George Harrison (lead guitar, vocals) and Ringo Starr (drums, vocals). Rooted in skiffle in a charity fundraising drive. The band accepted his invitation to visit the senior common room of Brasenose College, where they were photographed with Archer and dons of the college, although they didn't play there. The critic Sheridan Morley, then a student at Merton, was present and recalled the occasion:

At the interval I went to the toilet, and there beside me was Ringo Starr Richard Starkey, MBE , better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr belonged to another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in 1962, taking over from Pete Best. He asked if I knew this Jeffrey Archer bloke. I said everyone in Oxford was trying to work out who he was. Ringo said: 'He strikes me as a nice enough fella, but he's the kind of bloke who would bottle your piss and sell it.'[6]

It was during this period that Archer met his wife, Mary, at that time studying chemistry Chemistry is the science of matter and the changes it undergoes. The science of matter is also addressed by physics, but while physics takes a more general and fundamental approach, chemistry is more specialized, being concerned with the composition, behavior, structure, and properties of matter, as well as the changes it undergoes during chemical at St Anne's College, Oxford St Anne's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. What is now St Anne's College began life as part of the "Association for the Education of Women", the first institution in Oxford to allow for the education of women , then later the "Society of Home Students". In 1942 it became the &. They married in July 1966. Mary went on to specialise in solar power.

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 The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area during 1967–70.

One organisation Archer worked for, the United Nations Association, alleged discrepancies in his claims for expenses, and details appeared in the press in a scrambled form. Archer brought a defamation action against the former Conservative The Conservative and Unionist Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. Founded in its present form during the early 19th century, it has since been the principal centre-right party in the UK member of parliament A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a parliament. In many countries the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a unique title, such as senate, and thus also have unique titles for its members, such as senators. Members of parliament tend to form parliamentary parties with members Humphry Berkeley, chairman of the UNA, as the source of the allegations. The case was settled out of court after three years. Berkeley tried to persuade Conservative Central Office that Archer was unsuitable as a parliamentary candidate, but a selection meeting at Louth disregarded any doubts.[1]

Archer set up his own fund-raising company, Arrow Enterprises, in 1969. That same year he opened an art gallery, the Archer Gallery, in Mayfair Mayfair is an area of central London, England, within the City of Westminster. The gallery specialised in modern art, including pieces by the acclaimed sculptor and painter Leon Underwood. The gallery ultimately lost money, however, and Archer sold it two years later.

Member of Parliament

At 29, he was elected as Member of Parliament A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a parliament. In many countries the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a unique title, such as senate, and thus also have unique titles for its members, such as senators. Members of parliament tend to form parliamentary parties with members (MP) for the Lincolnshire The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire is composed of the non-metropolitan county of Lincolnshire and the area covered by the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire and North-East Lincolnshire. The county is the second largest of the English counties and one that is predominantly agricultural in land use 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. 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.

Louth constituency had three key areas: Louth, Cleethorpes Cleethorpes is a town and unparished area in North East Lincolnshire, England, situated on the estuary of the Humber. It has a population of 31,853, and Immingham. During his time as a Member of Parliament, Archer was a regular at the Immingham Conservative Club in the most working-class part of the constituency.

In Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories. At its head is the Sovereign, Queen Elizabeth, Archer was on the left of the Conservative Party, rebelling against some of his party's policies. He urged free TV licences for the elderly and was against museum charges. Archer voted against restoring capital punishment, saying it was barbaric and obscene. In 1971, he employed David Mellor, then needing money for his bar finals In Brazil there is a bar examination that occurs in each State in March, September and January. These examinations are organized by Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil, the Brazilian Bar association. The exam is divided in two stages—the first one consists of 100 multiple choice questions covering all the disciplines learned at the University, where, to deal with his correspondence. He tipped Mellor to reach the cabinet. In an interview Archer said "I hope we don't return to extremes. I'm what you might call centre-right but I've always disliked the right wing as much as I've disliked the left wing."[7]

In 1974, he was a casualty of a fraudulent investment scheme involving Aquablast, a Canadian company, a debacle which lost Archer his first fortune.[1] Fearing imminent bankruptcy, he stood down as an MP at the October 1974 general election. By this time the Archers were living in a large five-bedroom house in The Boltons, an exclusive street in South Kensington South Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London. It is a built-up area located 2.4 miles west south-west of Charing Cross. As a result of the Aquablast affair, they were forced to sell the house and move into more modest accommodation for a while.

Archer remained president of Immingham Conservative Party until he withdrew from the 2000 election for Mayor of London in 1999. Archer is considered a local celebrity by people of Immingham who were around when he was their Member of Parliament (although Archer has no family or business connection with the area). His rare visits to northern Lincolnshire The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire is composed of the non-metropolitan county of Lincolnshire and the area covered by the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire and North-East Lincolnshire. The county is the second largest of the English counties and one that is predominantly agricultural in land use attract considerable local public interest.

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 BBC Radio 4 is a domestic UK radio station that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967 in the early 1980s. While he was a witness in the Aquablast case in Toronto in 1977, Archer was accused of taking three suits from a department store, an accusation he denied for many years. However, in the late 1990s, Archer finally acknowledged that he had indeed taken the suits, although he claimed that at the time he hadn't realised he had left the shop.[1] No charges were brought.

Kane and Abel proved to be his best-selling work, reaching number one on the New York Times The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. Although it remains both the largest local metropolitan newspaper in the United States as well as being third largest overall, behind The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, the weekday circulation of the paper has fallen precipitously bestsellers list. It was made into a television mini-series A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a production which tells a story in a planned limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term. Various British television productions dating as by CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major American television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of the company's logo. It has also been called the " in 1985, starring Peter Strauss Peter Strauss is an American television and movie actor, perhaps best known for his roles in several television miniseries in the 1970s. He won an Emmy Award for his role on the 1979 made-for-television movie The Jericho Mile. His other noted television miniseries credits include roles in Rich Man, Poor Man, the sequel Rich Man, Poor Man Book II, and Sam Neill Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill, DCNZM, OBE is a New Zealand actor. The following year, Granada TV screened a ten-part adaptation of another Archer bestseller, First Among Equals, which told the story of four men and their quest to become Prime Minister.[8]

Archer states to spend considerable time writing and re-writing each book. He goes abroad to write the first draft, working in blocks of two-hours at a time, then writes anything up to seventeen further drafts. It has been suggested that his books require extensive editing by others to make them readable.[9][10]

In 1979, Archer purchased the Old Vicarage, Grantchester, a house associated with the poet Rupert Brooke. He also began to hold shepherd's pie Cottage pie refers to an English meat pie made with beef mince and with a crust made from mashed potato. A variation on this dish using lamb mince is known as Shepherd's pie and Krug Champagne Krug—a "négociant-manipulateur" with offices in Reims, the main city in Champagne—was one of the famous Champagne houses who formed part of the membership of the Grande Marques. Krug Grande Cuvée is one of the crown jewels in the LVMH wine division, placed alongside the Moët et Chandon's Cuvée Dom Pérignon and Veuve parties for prominent people at his London apartment, which overlooks the Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames[note 1] in the heart of the London borough of the City of Westminster, close to the.[1]

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 Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She is the only woman to have held either post in September 1985. Norman Tebbit Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit CH, PC is a British Conservative politician and former Member of Parliament (MP) for Chingford, who was born in Ponders End, Middlesex. He and his wife were injured, she seriously, in the Provisional Irish Republican Army bombing of the 1984 Conservative Party conference in Brighton, party chairman, had misgivings over the appointment, as did other prominent members of the party, including William Whitelaw William Stephen Ian Whitelaw, 1st Viscount Whitelaw, KT, CH, MC, PC, DL , commonly known as Willie Whitelaw, was a British Conservative politician 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".

Archer resigned in October 1986 due to a scandal caused by an article in The News of the World, which led on the story "Tory boss Archer pays vice-girl" and claimed Archer had paid Monica Coghlan, a prostitute, £2,000 through an intermediary at Victoria Station to go abroad.[1]

Daily Star libel case

Compounding on this story, the Daily Star The Daily Star is a daily British tabloid newspaper. It was first published on 2 November 1978, and was the first new national paper to be launched since the Daily Mirror in 1903. For many years it published Monday to Saturday but on 15 September 2002 it expanded to bring out a Sunday edition, the Daily Star Sunday, which is edited by Gareth alleged that Archer had slept with Coghlan.[1] Archer responded by suing the Daily Star The Daily Star is a daily British tabloid newspaper. It was first published on 2 November 1978, and was the first new national paper to be launched since the Daily Mirror in 1903. For many years it published Monday to Saturday but on 15 September 2002 it expanded to bring out a Sunday edition, the Daily Star Sunday, which is edited by Gareth. 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.

There was astonishment[clarification needed] at the description the judge (Mr Justice Caulfield) gave of Mrs Archer in his jury instructions: "Remember Mary Archer in the witness-box. Your vision of her probably will never disappear. Has she elegance? Has she fragrance? Would she have, without the strain of this trial, radiance? How would she appeal? Has she had a happy married life? Has she been able to enjoy, rather than endure, her husband Jeffrey?" The judge then went on to say of Jeffrey Archer, "Is he in need of cold, unloving, rubber-insulated sex in a seedy hotel round about quarter to one on a Tuesday morning after an evening at the Caprice?"[11] By this time, according to the journalist Adam Raphael, Jeffrey and Mary Archer were, in fact, living largely separate lives. The editor of the Daily Star, Lloyd Turner, was sacked six weeks after the trial by the paper's owner Lord Stevens of Ludgate.[12]

Archer has also been sued for a libel case of £8m that he lost after accusations in his book Twist in the Tale, portraying Major General James Oluleye to be a thief. (Oluleye is the author of "Archetecturing a Destiny" and "Military Leadership in Nigeria".)

Kurdish charity and peerage

When Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the President of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolutionary Ba'ath Party, which espoused secular pan-Arabism, economic modernization, and Arab socialism, Saddam played a key role in the 1968 coup that brought the party to long-term power suppressed Kurdish uprisings The 1991 uprisings in Iraq were a series of anti-governmental intifada rebellions in southern and northern Iraq during the aftermath of the Gulf War. The revolt was fueled by the perception that the power of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was vulnerable at the time; as well as by heavily fueled anger at government repression and the devastation in 1991, Archer, with the Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers worldwide which started to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for the human being, and to prevent and alleviate human suffering, without any discrimination based on nationality, race, sex, religious, set up the charity Simple Truth, a fundraising campaign on behalf of the Kurds The Kurds are an Ethnic-Iranian ethnolinguistic group mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. Substantial Kurdish communities also exist in the cities of western Turkey, and they can also be found in Armenia, Georgia, Israel, Azerbaijan, Russia, Lebanon and, in recent decades,."[13] In May 1991, Archer organised a charity pop concert A benefit concert or charity concert is a concert, show or gala featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. Such events raise both funds and public awareness to address the cause at issue, starring Rod Stewart Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter born and raised in London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English lineage, Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter, known for his success beginning in 1965 as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles charts, "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", and ", Sting and Gloria Estefan, who all performed for 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.[13] The charity would later result in further controversy.

Having been previously rejected[13], Archer was made a life peer in 1992 as Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare, of Mark in the County of Somerset. Prime minister John Major recommended him largely because of Archer's role in aid to the Kurds.[13]

Poltical statements in 1990s

In a speech at the 1993 Conservative conference, Archer urged the 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.[14]. 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.[15] The following day, Jeffrey Archer bought 50,000 shares in Anglia Television, acting on behalf of a friend, Broosk Saib.[12] 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.[15] The arrangements he made with the stockbrokers, meant he did not have to pay at the time of buying the shares.[12]

An inquiry was launched by the Stock Exchange into possible insider trading. The Department of Trade and Industry, headed by Michael Heseltine, announced that Archer would not be prosecuted.[15] Archer later claimed that he had been "exonerated", but the DTI inquiry had merely stated that there was insufficient evidence to bring a prosecution.

Downfall

London Mayoral candidacy and allegations of perjury

In 1999, Archer had been selected by the Conservative Party as candidate for the London mayoral election of 2000, when, on 21 November 1999, the News of the World published allegations that he had committed perjury in his 1987 libel case. Archer withdrew his candidacy the following day.[16]

The basis of the allegations originated with Ted Francis, a friend who claimed Archer owed him money, and Angela Peppiatt, Archer's former personal assistant. They stated that Archer had fabricated an alibi in the 1987 trial and were concerned that Archer was unsuitable to stand as Mayor of London. Peppiatt had kept a diary of Archer's movements, which contradicted evidence given during the 1987 trial.[17]

After the allegations, Archer was disowned by his party. Conservative leader William Hague explained: ""This is the end of politics for Jeffrey Archer. I will not tolerate such behaviour in my party."[18] On 4 February 2000, Archer was expelled from the party for five years.[16]

Trial

On 26 September 2000, he was charged with perjury and perverting the course of justice during the 1987 libel trial.[16] 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.[19]

The perjury trial began on 30 May 2001, a month after Monica Coghlan's death. Archer never spoke during the trial, though his wife Mary again gave evidence as she had done during the 1987 trial. When Archer's mother died on 11 July, aged 87, he was released for the day to attend the funeral.[20] On 19 July 2001, Archer was found guilty of perjury and perverting the course of justice at the 1987 trial. He was sentenced to four years' imprisonment by Mr Justice Potts. Ted Francis was found not guilty of perverting the course of justice.

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, England, 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.

While in prison, he wrote the three-volume memoir A Prison Diary, with volumes fashioned after Dante's Divine Comedy and named the first three prisons he was kept in. During his inprisonment, Archer was visited by a number of high-profile friends, including the actor Donald Sinden[21] and the performer Barry Humphries.[22][23]

In October 2002, Archer repaid the Daily Star the £500,000 damages he had received in 1987, as well as legal costs and interest of £1.3 million.[24] That month, he was suspended from Marylebone Cricket Club for seven years.[25]

On 21 July 2003, Archer was released on licence, after serving half of his sentence, from HMP Hollesley Bay, Suffolk.[26]

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.[27][13] In 1991, Archer had claimed to have raised £57,042,000.[13] 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."[13]

A British Red Cross-commissioned KPMG audit of the cash showed no donations were handled by Archer and any misappropriation was "unlikely". But KPMG could find no evidence to support Archer's claims to have raised £31.5 million from overseas governments. The police said they would launch a "preliminary assessment of the facts" from the audit but were not investigating the Simple Truth fund.[28]

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.

In 2004, the government of Equatorial Guinea alleged that Archer was one of the financiers of the failed 2004 coup d'état attempt against them, citing bank details and telephone records as evidence.[29]

On 26 February 2006, on Andrew Marr's Sunday AM programme, Archer said he had no interest in returning to front-line politics: he would pursue his writing instead.[30] He has confirmed this when speaking at the Emmanuel College Politics Society and the Christ's Politics Society at the University of Cambridge.

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),[31] 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".

In November 2004 Archer was the subject of a Gilbert and Sullivan-style spoof in the BBC series, "15 Minute Musical".

In There's No Place Like a Home, a comedy play by Paul Elliot, the residents of a retirement home for actors and actresses, trying to prevent its closure, kidnap Archer to use the ransom money to keep their home open.

The satirical magazine Private Eye refers to Archer as 'Jeffrey Archole' or 'Lord Archole' and characterises him as a liar and fantasist. On occasion it has published spoofs of Archer's fiction, describing a thinly-veiled heroic version of himself called 'Jeremy Bowman'.

Archer portrayed himself in a brief portion of Bridget Jones's Diary. The joke was that Bridget always says the wrong thing and was introducing "The greatest book of our time" and then spots several famous (and better according to the joke) authors in the crowd, one of whom is Lord Archer.

In an episode of Cluedo, Reverend Green compares himself to Jeffrey Archer in his murder confession.

List of works

Kane and Abel series

Prison diaries

Other novels

The Clifton Chronicles

Plays

Short stories/Collections

For children

Further reading

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Caroline Davies (20 July 2001). "He lied his way to the top". Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1334660/He-lied-his-way-to-the-top.html.
  2. ^ Jim Waley (22 July 2001). "Author of his own Demise". ninemsn. http://sgp1.paddington.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/feature_stories/article_890.asp?s=1.
  3. ^ Simon Jeffery (19 July 2001). "Rise and Fall of Jeffrey Archer". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/jul/19/archer.politics2.
  4. ^ Jeffery, Simon (2001-07-19). "The rise and fall of Jeffrey Archer". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/jul/19/archer.politics2. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
  5. ^ Simon Jeffery (19 July 2001). "Rise and Fall of Jeffrey Archer". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/jul/19/archer.politics2.
  6. ^ Paul Kelso (20 July 2001). "Mendacious, ambitious, generous and naive". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2001/jul/20/conservatives.archer11.
  7. ^ "Lord Archer answers your questions". London: BBC News. 1999-02-01. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/269876.stm. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  8. ^ In the U.S. edition of the novel, the character of Andrew Fraser was eliminated, reducing the number of protagonists to three.
  9. ^ Paul Kelso "Mendacious, ambitious, generous and naive", The Guardian, 20 July 2001. Retrieved on 9 May 2007.
  10. ^ "The Fall of Jeffrey Archer: The Man and the Myths: His was a life ...", The Independent by Chris Blackhurst. 20 July 2007 [page 2. Retrieved on 9 May 2007.
  11. ^ "Archer marriage under spotlight". London: BBC. 2001-06-14. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1388341.stm. Retrieved 2007-12-01.
  12. ^ a b c "Star demands £2.2m from Archer". London: BBC News. 19 July 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1447018.stm.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g Tempest, Matthew (16 August 2001). "Archer fraud allegations: the simple truth". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/archer/article/0,,537932,00.html. Retrieved 2007-12-18.
  14. ^ The Times newspaper – Thursday 7 October 1993
  15. ^ a b c Watt, Nicholas (30 October 1999). "Archer's share deal under scrutiny again". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/mayor/Story/0,,194773,00.html. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  16. ^ a b c "Timeline: Stranger than fiction". London: BBC. 8 October 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1420132.stm.
  17. ^ "Ted Francis: Archer whistleblower". London: BBC. 19 July 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1420933.stm.
  18. ^ White, Michael (23 November 1999). "Disgraced Archer jettisoned by Tories". London: The Guardian Unlimited. http://www.guardian.co.uk/archer/article/0,,195732,00.html. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  19. ^ "Review – The Accused". Curtain Up. 8 October 2002. http://www.curtainup.com/accused.html.
  20. ^ "Archer jailed for perjury". London: BBC. 19 July 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1424501.stm.
  21. ^ "New celeb jail visitor for Archer". Sunday Mirror. 16 Feb 2003. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4161/is_20030216/ai_n12861033/.
  22. ^ "How We Met: Barry Humprhies & Jeffrey Archer". London: Independent. 6 April 2008. http://www.independent.co.uk/extras/sunday-review/regulars/how-we-met-barry-humprhies--jeffrey-archer-804282.html. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  23. ^ "So that's what he was up to when he wasn't out for lunch". London: Independent. 6 October 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1424501.stm.
  24. ^ Leonard, Tom (2 October 2002). "Archer settles £1.8m libel debt with newspaper". London: Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1408852/Archer-settles-1.8m-libel-debt-with-newspaper.html. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  25. ^ Wilson, Jamie (28 October 2002). "MCC gives Archer out – for seven years". London: Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2002/oct/28/cricket.archer. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  26. ^ "Lord Archer freed from prison". London: BBC. 22 September 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3082627.stm.
  27. ^ "Archer faces 'missing aid' probe". BBC (London). 23 July 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1451998.stm. Retrieved 2007-12-18.
  28. ^ Boggan, Steve (24 November 2001). "http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article145624.ece". Independent (London). http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article145624.ece. Retrieved 2007-12-18.
  29. ^ Pallister, David (13 October 2004). "New Archer link to coup plot alleged". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/equatorialguinea/story/0,,1326040,00.html. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
  30. ^ "Archer 'may vote in Lords again'". London: BBC. 26 February 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4752758.stm.
  31. ^ "Jeffrey Archer: The Truth – BBC Drama". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/archer/. Retrieved 2007-12-01.

External links

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Sir Cyril Osborne Member of Parliament for Louth 1969–Oct 1974 Succeeded by Michael Brotherton
Persondata
NAME Archer, Jeffrey
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION English politician and author
DATE OF BIRTH 15 April 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH London, England
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH

Categories: 1940 births | Living people | Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford | British criminals | Conservative MPs (UK) | English novelists | English perjurors | English thriller writers | Former Conservative life peers | Members of the Greater London Council | Members of the United Kingdom Parliament for English constituencies | People from the City of London | People from Weston-super-Mare | UK MPs 1966–1970 | UK MPs 1970–1974 | UK MPs 1974 | Jailed UK peers

 

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