 In his search for a new career Thorpe applied unsuccessfully for the posts of administrator of the Aldeburgh festival, and race relations adviser to the Greater London Council. His attempts to restart a career in television also came to nothing. In February 1982 it was announced that he was to become director of the British section of Amnesty International, but the appointment was opposed by many of the organisation's membership, and after a month of controversy Thorpe withdrew from the post. He kept his position as chairman of the political committee of the United Nations Association, but in 1985 the progression of Parkinson's disease, which had first been diagnosed in 1979, led to the curtailment of most of his public activity. He continued to live in North Devon, and in 1987 accepted the honorary presidency of the North Devon Liberal Democrat association, formed after the Liberal – SDP merger. He thought he might return to parliament via a life peerage in the House of Lords, but although friends lobbied on his behalf, the merged party's leadership refused to recommend him. Within the party generally, feelings towards him warmed, and when he attended the 1997 annual conference he received a standing ovation.
