David Mellor facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Right Honourable David Mellor KC
David Mellor in 2023
Secretary of State for National Heritage
In office 11 April 1992 – 22 September 1992
Prime Minister	John Major
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Peter Brooke
Chief Secretary to the Treasury
In office 28 November 1990 – 11 April 1992
Prime Minister	John Major
Preceded by	Norman Lamont
Succeeded by	Michael Portillo
Minister for the Arts
In office 26 July 1990 – 28 November 1990
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Richard Luce
Succeeded by	Tim Renton
Minister of State for Home Affairs
In office 27 October 1989 – 26 July 1990
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	John Patten
Succeeded by	Angela Rumbold
Minister of State for Health
In office 25 July 1988 – 27 October 1989
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Tony Newton
Succeeded by	Anthony Trafford
Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
In office 13 June 1987 – 25 July 1988
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Tim Renton
Succeeded by	William Waldegrave
Member of Parliament for Putney
In office 3 May 1979 – 8 April 1997
Preceded by	Hugh Jenkins
Succeeded by	Tony Colman
Personal details
Born	(1949-03-12) 12 March 1949 (age 76) Wareham, Dorset, England
Political party	None
Other political affiliations	Conservative (until 2003)
Spouse	Judith Mellor ​ ​ (m. 1974; div. 1995)​
Domestic partner	Penelope Lyttelton, Viscountess Cobham
Children	2
Alma mater	Christ's College, Cambridge
Profession	Barrister – not practising

David John Mellor (born 12 March 1949) is a British politician who also worked in broadcasting and law. He was a member of the Conservative Party. He served in the Cabinet, which is a group of top government ministers. He worked for Prime Minister John Major.

His important roles included Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 1990 to 1992. He was also Secretary of State for National Heritage in 1992. He later resigned from this role. David Mellor was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Putney. He held this position from 1979 to 1997. After leaving Parliament, he became a newspaper writer and radio presenter. He also led the government's 'Football Task Force'.

Early Life and Education

David Mellor was born in Wareham, Dorset, in 1949. He attended Swanage Grammar School. Later, he studied at Christ's College, Cambridge. While at Cambridge, he was the chairman of a student political group. He also appeared on the TV show University Challenge.

After college, he worked briefly for Jeffrey Archer, who was an MP at the time. Mellor then became a Barrister in 1972. A barrister is a type of lawyer who represents people in court. He stopped practicing law when he became an MP in 1979. In 1987, he was given the special title of Queen's Counsel.

Political Career

David Mellor first tried to become an MP in 1974. He then successfully became the MP for Putney in 1979. He kept this seat in Parliament until 1997.

Government Roles

In 1981, Mellor became a junior minister at the Department of Energy. This was his first government role. In 1983, he moved to the Home Office. Here, he helped create important laws. These included laws about policing and setting up the Crown Prosecution Service. This service decides if someone should be charged with a crime. He also worked on laws for re-examining unfair court decisions.

In 1987, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher moved him to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He was in charge of relations with the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and the Soviet Union. From 1988 to 1989, he was a minister for health. In this role, he helped start a national program for cochlear implants. These are devices that help people with severe hearing loss to hear.

In 1990, he became a Privy Counsellor. This is an honor given to important political figures. He then joined John Major's Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury. This role involves managing government spending. After the 1992 general election, he became Secretary of State for National Heritage. This new department looked after culture, media, and sports. He was sometimes called the "Minister for Fun" because of comments he made about his new job.

Resignation from Government

In September 1992, David Mellor resigned from his government position. This happened after a lot of media attention. He faced pressure due to personal matters and questions about a holiday gift he had received. He decided to step down from his role as Secretary of State for National Heritage.

Leaving Parliament

David Mellor ran for re-election in 1997. However, he lost his seat to Tony Colman from the Labour Party. This election was a big change in British politics. The Labour Party won by a large amount, ending nearly 20 years of Conservative government.

Life After Politics

After leaving Parliament, David Mellor continued to be active. From 1997 to 1999, he led the government's 'Football Task Force'. This group made recommendations for football in the UK. One of their ideas, which became law, made it a crime for individual fans to make racist comments at games.

Mellor also started a career in journalism. He wrote articles for several national newspapers. He often wrote about current events, sports, and the arts. He presented football shows on BBC Radio 5 until 2001. He also hosted classical music programs on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 3.

Since 2000, Mellor has been a radio presenter at Classic FM. He also writes reviews of opera and classical music for The Mail on Sunday newspaper. He is a regular guest on the radio station LBC. He used to host a Saturday morning show about politics and current events with former London Mayor Ken Livingstone.

In 2010 and 2014, news reports mentioned incidents where Mellor had arguments. In one case, he argued with a chef near his home. In another, he had a disagreement with a taxi driver. Mellor later said he regretted losing his temper in the taxi incident.

Personal Life

David Mellor married Judith Hall in 1974. They had two sons together. They divorced in 1995. David Mellor now lives with his partner, Penelope Lyttelton, Viscountess Cobham.