Tag Archives: emlyn hooson

The Autumn 2026 edition of the Journal of Liberal History published

By Nick Alderton | Mon 5th October 2026 - 2:49 pm

The Liberal Democrat History Group are pleased to announce that the latest issue of the Journal of Liberal History (issue 132, Autumn 2026) has just been published.

The Journal is published quarterly and can be purchased here or you can take out an annual subscription here.

The Journal was first published in 1993 as a newsletter. It has come a long way since then and is read by people from all walks of life and all over the world. As a peer-reviewed journal, the highest rigours of accuracy are maintained but we have made sure the content is as accessible as possible.

The latest issue is packed, across its 56 pages, with features, articles and reviews.

Liberal History News

The editor of the Journal, Duncan Brack, looks back at the life of Jim Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness, who died in January.

Lord Wallace was a Scottish Liberal/Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland from 1983 to 2001. He was the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats from 1992 to 2005 and as a member of the Scottish Parliament, he served as Deputy First Minister of Scotland from 1999 to 2005. He stepped into the role of acting First Minister twice.

Articles

Showcasing the work of historians, whether professional or amateur, is what the Journal does best. All the articles are peer-reviewed by leading historians, allowing for an accessible and interesting read.

In this issue, our authors have provided us with a broad set of articles:

Flattered to Deceive? John Curtice examines the performance of the Liberal Democrats in the May 2026 local and devolved elections.

Boundaries, Science and the redrawing of England’s Electoral Map in 1832 Martin Spychal describes the 1832 Boundary Act and the work of the 1831–32 Boundary Commission.

Posted in Liberal History | Also tagged jim wallace and journal of liberal history | 1 Comment

A bit of Lib Dem history

By Martin Thomas | Wed 2nd August 2017 - 12:34 pm

Embed from Getty Images

The sad passing of Jim Davidson recently brings back memories, as I write this here in Aboyne in the heart of his former constituency.

“We can’t have another Welshman as leader of the Liberal Party” said Jo Grimond. When Jo resigned as leader in 1967, there were two contestants to replace him: Emlyn Hooson and Jeremy Thorpe. The electorate was the Parliamentary Party of twelve Liberal MPs. Initially, Hooson had the support of six of them which, if he voted for himself, would make him the clear winner.

Jo took aside Jim Davidson, the pleasant and talented recently elected Member for Aberdeenshire West, who was a Hooson supporter. Jo’s wife Laura had not forgiven the Welsh wizard, David Lloyd George, for supplanting her grandfather, Herbert Asquith, as Prime Minister in 1916 and splitting the Party. Another Welshman as Leader was unthinkable. Jim succumbed to Jo’s pressure and with misgivings, as a memoir of Jo and Laura revealed in 2000, promised his vote for Thorpe.

Posted in Liberal History | Also tagged james davidson and jeremy thorpe | 15 Comments

Emlyn Hooson (1925-2012)

By Mark Valladares | Wed 22nd February 2012 - 3:21 pm

It is with much regret that Liberal Democrat Voice has received word that Lord Hooson, former Liberal MP for Montgomeryshire, passed away peacefully yesterday.

Emlyn Hooson was educated at Denbigh Grammar School and University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, before serving in the Royal Navy in World War II. By 1960, he had become the youngest ever Queen’s Counsel, whilst rising swiftly through the ranks of the Liberal Party, chairing the Welsh Liberal Party from 1955.

When Clement Davies died in 1962, Emlyn was selected to fight the resultant by-election for a Parliamentary seat which had been continuously Liberal since 1880, and he …

Posted in News, Obituaries, Parliament and Wales | 1 Comment