1. Betty Boothroyd, Baroness Boothroyd, was a British politician who served as a member of Parliament for West Bromwich and West Bromwich West from 1973 to 2000.
24 Facts About Betty Boothroyd
1. 2.
Betty Boothroyd was previously a Deputy Speaker from 1987 to 1992.
3.
Betty Boothroyd was the first and as of 2025, the only woman to serve as Speaker.
4.
Betty Boothroyd was born in Dewsbury, Yorkshire, in 1929, as the only child of Ben Archibald Betty Boothroyd and his second wife Mary, both textile workers.
5.
Betty Boothroyd was educated at council schools and went on to study at Dewsbury College of Commerce and Art.
6.
Betty Boothroyd subsequently worked in Washington, DC as a legislative assistant to American Congressman Silvio Conte, between 1960 and 1962.
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Betty Boothroyd was a member of the Labour Party National Executive Committee from 1981 to 1987, and the House of Commons Commission from 1983 to 1987.
8.
Betty Boothroyd was the second female Deputy Speaker in British history after Betty Harvie Anderson.
9.
Betty Boothroyd chose not to but stated that any subsequent Speakers would be free to choose to wear the wig or not; none have since done so.
10.
On 12 July 2000, following Prime Minister's Questions, Betty Boothroyd announced to the House of Commons she would resign as Speaker after the summer recess.
11.
Betty Boothroyd stepped down as Speaker and resigned as an MP on 23 October 2000.
12.
Betty Boothroyd was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Civil Law by the City University London in 1993.
13.
Betty Boothroyd was chancellor of the Open University from 1994 until October 2006 and donated some of her personal papers to the University's archives.
14.
Two portraits of Betty Boothroyd have been part of the parliamentary art collection since 1994 and 1999, respectively.
15.
Betty Boothroyd was Patron of the Jo Richardson Community School in Dagenham, East London, and President of NBFA Assisting the Elderly.
16.
Betty Boothroyd was, for a period, Vice President of the Industry and Parliament Trust.
17.
Betty Boothroyd took up paragliding while on holiday in Cyprus in her 60s.
18.
Betty Boothroyd described the hobby as both "lovely and peaceful" and "exhilarating".
19.
Betty Boothroyd's vehicle was immobilised by a landslide; she and a group of hikers walked through mud and rubble for nine hours before they were rescued.
20.
Betty Boothroyd is the sitter in eleven portraits at the National Portrait Gallery.
21.
Betty Boothroyd died at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge on 26 February 2023, at the age of 93.
22.
Betty Boothroyd's death was announced the following day by Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House.
23.
Betty Boothroyd received at least eight honorary degrees in recognition of her political career, including:.
24.
Betty Boothroyd was additionally made an Honorary Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge, in 1994.