Paddy Ashdown

Jeremy John Durham "Paddy" Ashdown, Baron Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon  (27 February 1941 – 22 December 2018) was a British politician and international diplomat. He served as leader of the Liberal Democrats from July 1988 to August 1999.

 Biography 
Paddy Ashdown was born in New Delhi, British India, but was brought up in Northern Ireland and his Irish accent brought him the nickname "Paddy". He served in the Royal Marines from 1959 to 1972 and saw fighting in Borneo, Hong Kong and Northern Ireland. At the 1983 general election, Ashdown became the Liberal Party's Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Yeovil.

In 1988, when the Social Democratic Party merged into the Liberal Party as the Liberal Democrats, Ashdown was elected the leader of the Liberals and led the party through the 1992 and 1997 general elections. He resigned in 1999, and was given both a knighthood and a seat in the House of Lords. In the House of Lords, he was given the title Baron Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon. From 2002 to 2006 he served as High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

His reputation was damaged slightly in 1992, when it was revealed that he had a five-month extra-marital affair with his secretary, and many British newspapers exposed this in great detail. The Sun newspaper ran a famous headline which played on Ashdown's name, calling him "Paddy Pants-Down".

Ashdown was diagnosed with "serious" bladder cancer in October 2018. He died two months later on 22 December 2018 from the disease in Norton-sub-Hamdon, Somerset, at the age of 77.

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Category:1941 births
Category:2018 deaths
Category:British military people

Category:Liberal Democrats (UK) MPs
Category:Members of the British House of Commons for English constituencies
Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Category:Leaders of the Liberal Democrats (UK)
Category:Liberal Party (UK) MPs
Category:Northern Ireland politicians
Category:Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Category:UK MPs 1983–1987
Category:UK MPs 1987–1992
Category:UK MPs 1992–1997
Category:UK MPs 1997–2001
Category:Liberal Democrat Life Peers