Didn’t Lord Haden-Guest wear many hats in his lifetime? This blue plaque honors Leslie Haden-Guest. He was the 1st Baron Haden-Guest. The plaque marks his residence at 38 Tite Street.
Lord Haden-Guest lived here. He was a physician born in 1877 and died in 1960. Alan Patient of www.plaquesoflondon.co.uk provided credit for this entry.
Leslie Haden-Guest was born in Oldham Lancashire. His birthdate was March 10 1877. He died on August 20 1960 at the age of 83. He was a British author journalist and doctor. He was also a Labour Party politician.
Haden-Guest’s father was a doctor and surgeon. His father was active in leftist causes. Haden-Guest studied medicine. He attended Owens College in Manchester. Later he went to the London Hospital.
Haden-Guest served in the Royal Army Medical Corps. He served in the Boer War World War I and World War II. He earned the Military Cross. He founded the Anglo-French Committee of the Red Cross. He was a member of the London County Council for Woolwich East from 1919 to 1922.
He was a Labour MP. He represented Southwark North from 1923 to 1927. He resigned in protest of Labour’s stance on sending troops to Shanghai. He unsuccessfully contested Wycombe in the 1931 election. In 1937 he won a by-election in Islington North. He remained an MP there until 1950.
Haden-Guest founded the Labour Party Commonwealth Group. He was part of the Anderson Committee. This committee developed the Government’s Evacuation Scheme in 1938. During World War II he contributed to a Fabian Society survey. It concerned evacuation. He suggested school meals and milk should be provided. This should happen regardless of parents’ financial status. Discriminating based on income would be disastrous.
Haden-Guest became a peer on February 2 1950. He was Baron Haden-Guest of Saling in the County of Essex. He served as a Lord-in-waiting to the King. This lasted from February to October 1951. Afterward he became an Assistant Opposition Whip in the House of Lords.
In 1898 he married Edith Low. They had two sons Stephen and Richard. The couple divorced in 1909. In 1910 he married Muriel Carmel Goldsmid. They had two sons David and Peter and a daughter Angela. David died in the Spanish Civil War. In 1944 he married Edith Edgar MacQueen. She was the first woman to earn a Ph.D. from the University of St Andrews. His grandsons include actor Christopher Guest. He is now the 5th Baron. Writer Anthony Haden-Guest is also his grandson.
Before marrying Muriel Goldsmid Haden-Guest converted to Judaism. He later renounced Judaism in 1924. He was the first Jew to run for Parliament as a Labour candidate. Bertrand Russell described Haden-Guest. He called him a theosophist with a fiery temper. He also said he had a considerable libido and was very anti-Bolshevik.
Lord Haden-Guest lived a full life. This plaque on Tite Street serves as a reminder. It commemorates his diverse contributions. He was a physician politician and writer. His legacy continues through his descendants and his work.