Wilfred Proudfoot
Encyclopedia
George Wilfred Proudfoot (born 19 December 1921) is a retired British
Conservative Party
politician and former Member of Parliament
(MP). He was also a prominent North Yorkshire businessman, well known for his ownership of the Proudfoot supermarket chain and Radio 270
. In later life he embarked on a new career as a hypnotist and hypnotherapist.
, County Durham
where his father was manager of the local Brough’s grocery shop. Brough’s was a family-owned retail chain serving Northern England. It was a British pioneer of the self-service
model whereby customers took goods from open shelves and paid for them at a check-out desk rather than being served at a counter. Proudfoot (senior) held a temporary commission and had won the Military Cross
while serving in the British army during the first world war. The older Proudfoot had political ambitions but these were restrained by Brough’s who refused to allow him to stand as a Conservative candidate in local council elections.
In his early years, Proudfoot helped his father in the shop by performing tasks such as filling blue bags with sugar. During the 1930s Crook experienced a level of unemployment approaching 40% and Proudfoot became familiar with the problems of retailing in a poor community. He was educated at a local council primary school but failed the 11 plus examination in spite of sitting it one year late after being “held back” a year. Subsequently, at age 14, he was sent to stay with two maiden aunts who ran a boarding house in Scarborough where he attended Scarborough College
, an independent school. After gaining the school certificate Proudfoot joined a Durham
accounting practice as a trainee.
In 1940 Proudfoot was conscripted into the Royal Air Force
(RAF). After a mixed career in the RAF, Proudfoot was commissioned and served in the education branch where he was responsible for providing basic instruction in English, mathematics and technical skills to new recruits, many of whom came from an educationally disadvantaged background. As a Training Instructor he “… taught hundreds of conscripts stuff they weren’t really bothered about. He took it as a challenge to interest them and keep them entertained – an achievement he still remembers with pride” - from the Proudfoot School of Hypnosis website.
After leaving the RAF in 1946, Proudfoot invested £1,750 from his RAF gratuity in buying a former foundry building in the village of Seamer
near Scarborough and fitting it out as a supermarket . He developed the business using the self service and high volume/low price model that he had observed at Brough’s in the 1930s. In 1954 he was able to open a second branch at Eastfield
and by the 1960s the business had grown into a chain of 6 shops around North Yorkshire
. Proudfoot acquired a large family house in Scalby Road, Scarborough and established his business headquarters in an annex of it. In 1964 he bought himself a villa in Spain for use as a holiday home.
Control of the Proudfoot Supermarkets business eventually passed to Proudfoot’s sons with Mark and Ian Proudfoot acting as managing directors. By 2008 some shops in the chain had been sold off (“… the massive boys made us offers we simply couldn’t refuse”), leaving the three at Seamer, Eastfield and Scalby still in Proudfoot ownership.
. He soon became a prominent local politician although his informal personal style did not always endear him to some people. He was once asked to leave the Scarborough Conservative Club when he entered it wearing jeans and a cardigan.
Proudfoot stood unsuccessfully for Parliament
in Hemsworth
at the 1951 general election
and in Cleveland
at the 1955 election
.
He was successful on his third attempt, winning the Cleveland seat from the Labour
MP Arthur Palmer
at the 1959 general election
. However, at the 1964 election
, he was defeated by the Labour candidate James Tinn
. Proudfoot contested the seat again at the 1966 general election
, but lost by a much wider margin.
At the 1970 general election
, he stood in the marginal West Yorkshire
constituency of Brighouse and Spenborough
, where he ousted the sitting Labour MP Colin Jackson
by a majority of only 59 votes. However, at the February 1974 general election
, Jackson won back the seat. Proudfoot stood again at the October 1974 election
, but lost again.
Throughout his two terms in Parliament, Proudfoot was particularly vocal on matters relating to the retail sector. During his first term (1959 to 1964) he was an early advocate of decimal coinage and opposed the use of trading stamps. He supported capital punishment whenever that was debated. Proudfoot never held ministerial office although he served as Parliamentary Private Secretary
to Sir Keith Joseph
(minister of housing and local government) between 1961 and 1963. During his second term (1970 to 1974) he was very vocal on the subject of commercial radio while legislation to allow it was being enacted. Fellow MPs gave him the nickname "Radio Proudfoot". In 1970 he engaged as his secretary one Christine Holman
, who was later to marry the politician Neil Hamilton
and become famous under her married name.
station to serve the North East coast from a ship to be anchored off Scarborough. After reading about this venture in a local newspaper, Proudfoot joined it and soon became its managing director. He was credited with putting the venture on a sound business footing.
He established the business as a limited company (Ellambar Investments Ltd) and attracted a large number of investors after addressing a public meeting at a Scarborough hotel. He warned investors that the venture was a high risk one and they should not expect a commercial return. Proudfoot’s immediate influence on programming was to drop a plan to broadcast a mixture of light music and lifestyle material in favour of a simple Top 40 format. A 30 year old, 150 tonne fishing vessel named Ocean 7 was acquired and fitted out with a 10 kW radio transmitter for a total cost of £75,000. The radio station was named Radio 270
and it was run from Proudfoot’s business headquarters in Scalby Road, Scarborough. Ocean 7 was registered in Honduras in the name of Radio 270's programme director Noel Miller (an Australian national).
The station broadcast from June 1966 until August 1967. Although it attracted a large body of regular listeners (up to 4 million was claimed) its affairs were controversial. One issue was that Ocean 7 was too small to operate comfortably off the exposed North East coast. By way of comparison with Radio 270's operation, Radio London
("the Big L") broadcast from the 650 tonne MV Galaxy in the sheltered Thames estuary. After Ocean 7 nearly sank in a winter storm, several of the ship’s crew and disc jockey
s threatened to mutiny. There were ongoing arguments concerning the safety of the ship, terms of employment and financial policy. Proudfoot resolved disputes with company officers, staff and fellow investors by dismissing those concerned. He also gave airtime to political causes, such as support for the white minority regimes in Rhodesia
and South Africa
being voiced by Conservative MP Patrick Wall
.
Although the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act
of 1967 brought about an early end to Radio 270, its brief life served to raise Proudfoot’s public profile considerably and this may have contributed to his return to Parliament in 1970. Some of its employees such as Roger Gale
, Paul Burnett
and Philip Hayton
went on to have distinguished careers in mainstream broadcasting. Maggie Lucas, the station's office manager later became secretary to the Chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Commission. It has been claimed that Radio 270 formed the factual basis for the 2009 film "The Boat That Rocked
".
In a 2008 newspaper interview Proudfoot also stated that he had been given a facelift
operation in Beverly Hills in 1977. He has lectured on hypnotism and hypnotherapy at venues around the world including ones in Spain, the US and the UK. He has established the Proudfoot School of Clinical Hypnosis and Psycotherapy based in Scarborough where training courses in various aspects of hypnotism are delivered.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician and former Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP). He was also a prominent North Yorkshire businessman, well known for his ownership of the Proudfoot supermarket chain and Radio 270
Radio 270
Radio 270 was a pirate radio station serving Yorkshire and the North East of England from 1966 to 1967. It broadcast from a converted Dutch lugger called Oceaan 7 positioned in international waters off Scarborough, North Yorkshire.-Origins :...
. In later life he embarked on a new career as a hypnotist and hypnotherapist.
Early life
Proudfoot was born in CrookCrook
- Places :* Crook, County Durham, England, United Kingdom* Crook, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom* Crook, Devon, England, United Kingdom* Crook Inn, Scotland, United Kingdom* Crook, Colorado, United States* Crook County, Oregon, United States...
, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
where his father was manager of the local Brough’s grocery shop. Brough’s was a family-owned retail chain serving Northern England. It was a British pioneer of the self-service
Piggly Wiggly
Piggly Wiggly is a supermarket chain operating in the Midwestern and Southern regions of the United States, run by Piggly Wiggly, LLC, an affiliate of C&S Wholesale Grocers. The current company headquarters is in Keene, New Hampshire....
model whereby customers took goods from open shelves and paid for them at a check-out desk rather than being served at a counter. Proudfoot (senior) held a temporary commission and had won the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
while serving in the British army during the first world war. The older Proudfoot had political ambitions but these were restrained by Brough’s who refused to allow him to stand as a Conservative candidate in local council elections.
In his early years, Proudfoot helped his father in the shop by performing tasks such as filling blue bags with sugar. During the 1930s Crook experienced a level of unemployment approaching 40% and Proudfoot became familiar with the problems of retailing in a poor community. He was educated at a local council primary school but failed the 11 plus examination in spite of sitting it one year late after being “held back” a year. Subsequently, at age 14, he was sent to stay with two maiden aunts who ran a boarding house in Scarborough where he attended Scarborough College
Scarborough College
Scarborough College is an independent day and boarding school for boys and girls aged 3-18 years. It is located in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England and was founded in 1898. The school has been an International Baccalaureate World School since June 2006...
, an independent school. After gaining the school certificate Proudfoot joined a Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
accounting practice as a trainee.
In 1940 Proudfoot was conscripted into the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(RAF). After a mixed career in the RAF, Proudfoot was commissioned and served in the education branch where he was responsible for providing basic instruction in English, mathematics and technical skills to new recruits, many of whom came from an educationally disadvantaged background. As a Training Instructor he “… taught hundreds of conscripts stuff they weren’t really bothered about. He took it as a challenge to interest them and keep them entertained – an achievement he still remembers with pride” - from the Proudfoot School of Hypnosis website.
After leaving the RAF in 1946, Proudfoot invested £1,750 from his RAF gratuity in buying a former foundry building in the village of Seamer
Seamer, Scarborough
Seamer is a village and civil parish in the Scarborough district of North Yorkshire, England.According to the 2001 UK census, Seamer parish had a population of 3,774....
near Scarborough and fitting it out as a supermarket . He developed the business using the self service and high volume/low price model that he had observed at Brough’s in the 1930s. In 1954 he was able to open a second branch at Eastfield
Eastfield, North Yorkshire
Eastfield is a village and civil parish in the Scarboroughdistrict of North Yorkshire, England.According to the 2001 UK census, Eastfield parish had a population of 5,863.The parish council is Eastfield Parish Council.-External links:*...
and by the 1960s the business had grown into a chain of 6 shops around North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
. Proudfoot acquired a large family house in Scalby Road, Scarborough and established his business headquarters in an annex of it. In 1964 he bought himself a villa in Spain for use as a holiday home.
Control of the Proudfoot Supermarkets business eventually passed to Proudfoot’s sons with Mark and Ian Proudfoot acting as managing directors. By 2008 some shops in the chain had been sold off (“… the massive boys made us offers we simply couldn’t refuse”), leaving the three at Seamer, Eastfield and Scalby still in Proudfoot ownership.
Political career
In 1950 Proudfoot became the youngest member of Scarborough Borough Council when he was elected as a councillor for the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. He soon became a prominent local politician although his informal personal style did not always endear him to some people. He was once asked to leave the Scarborough Conservative Club when he entered it wearing jeans and a cardigan.
Proudfoot stood unsuccessfully for Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
in Hemsworth
Hemsworth (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:- Elections in the 1990s :- Elections in the 1940s :- Elections in the 1930s :- Elections in the 1920s :...
at the 1951 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
and in Cleveland
Cleveland (UK Parliament constituency)
Cleveland was a county constituency in the North Riding of Yorkshire.-Electorate:It returned one Member of Parliament to the British House of Commons, using the first past the post voting system...
at the 1955 election
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
.
He was successful on his third attempt, winning the Cleveland seat from the Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MP Arthur Palmer
Arthur Palmer (politician)
Arthur Montague Frank Palmer was a British Labour Co-operative politician.Palmer was born in Northam, Devon and educated at Ashford County Grammar School and Acton Technical College...
at the 1959 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
. However, at the 1964 election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
, he was defeated by the Labour candidate James Tinn
James Tinn
James Tinn was a British Labour Party politician.Tinn was educated at Ruskin College and Jesus College, Oxford and became a teacher...
. Proudfoot contested the seat again at the 1966 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
, but lost by a much wider margin.
At the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
, he stood in the marginal West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
constituency of Brighouse and Spenborough
Brighouse and Spenborough (UK Parliament constituency)
Brighouse and Spenborough was a parliamentary constituency in the West Riding of Yorkshire, comprising the areas of the two municipal boroughs of Brighouse and Spenborough...
, where he ousted the sitting Labour MP Colin Jackson
Colin Jackson (UK politician)
George Colin Jackson was a British Labour Party politician, barrister, lecturer and writer.He was twice Member of Parliament for the marginal constituency of Brighouse and Spenborough, in West Yorkshire...
by a majority of only 59 votes. However, at the February 1974 general election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
, Jackson won back the seat. Proudfoot stood again at the October 1974 election
United Kingdom general election, October 1974
The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
, but lost again.
Throughout his two terms in Parliament, Proudfoot was particularly vocal on matters relating to the retail sector. During his first term (1959 to 1964) he was an early advocate of decimal coinage and opposed the use of trading stamps. He supported capital punishment whenever that was debated. Proudfoot never held ministerial office although he served as Parliamentary Private Secretary
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...
to Sir Keith Joseph
Keith Joseph
Keith St John Joseph, Baron Joseph, Bt, CH, PC , was a British barrister and politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet under three Prime Ministers , and is widely regarded to have been the "power behind the throne" in the creation of what came to be known as...
(minister of housing and local government) between 1961 and 1963. During his second term (1970 to 1974) he was very vocal on the subject of commercial radio while legislation to allow it was being enacted. Fellow MPs gave him the nickname "Radio Proudfoot". In 1970 he engaged as his secretary one Christine Holman
Christine Hamilton
Christine Hamilton is a British television personality and author, and the wife of former British Member of Parliament Neil Hamilton who was Minister for Corporate Affairs between 1992-1994....
, who was later to marry the politician Neil Hamilton
Neil Hamilton (politician)
Mostyn Neil Hamilton is a former British barrister, teacher and Conservative MP. Since losing his seat in 1997 and leaving politics, Hamilton and his wife Christine have become media celebrities...
and become famous under her married name.
Radio 270
In 1965 a group of local businessmen formed a consortium to promote a new pirate radioPirate radio in Europe
An introduction to the subject of pirate radio can be found under that heading.- Belgium :*1962*1964*1973*1974*1978- Denmark :*1958*1961*1962*2006- Finland :...
station to serve the North East coast from a ship to be anchored off Scarborough. After reading about this venture in a local newspaper, Proudfoot joined it and soon became its managing director. He was credited with putting the venture on a sound business footing.
He established the business as a limited company (Ellambar Investments Ltd) and attracted a large number of investors after addressing a public meeting at a Scarborough hotel. He warned investors that the venture was a high risk one and they should not expect a commercial return. Proudfoot’s immediate influence on programming was to drop a plan to broadcast a mixture of light music and lifestyle material in favour of a simple Top 40 format. A 30 year old, 150 tonne fishing vessel named Ocean 7 was acquired and fitted out with a 10 kW radio transmitter for a total cost of £75,000. The radio station was named Radio 270
Radio 270
Radio 270 was a pirate radio station serving Yorkshire and the North East of England from 1966 to 1967. It broadcast from a converted Dutch lugger called Oceaan 7 positioned in international waters off Scarborough, North Yorkshire.-Origins :...
and it was run from Proudfoot’s business headquarters in Scalby Road, Scarborough. Ocean 7 was registered in Honduras in the name of Radio 270's programme director Noel Miller (an Australian national).
The station broadcast from June 1966 until August 1967. Although it attracted a large body of regular listeners (up to 4 million was claimed) its affairs were controversial. One issue was that Ocean 7 was too small to operate comfortably off the exposed North East coast. By way of comparison with Radio 270's operation, Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
("the Big L") broadcast from the 650 tonne MV Galaxy in the sheltered Thames estuary. After Ocean 7 nearly sank in a winter storm, several of the ship’s crew and disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
s threatened to mutiny. There were ongoing arguments concerning the safety of the ship, terms of employment and financial policy. Proudfoot resolved disputes with company officers, staff and fellow investors by dismissing those concerned. He also gave airtime to political causes, such as support for the white minority regimes in Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
being voiced by Conservative MP Patrick Wall
Patrick Wall
Major Sir Patrick Henry Bligh Wall KBE , MC, VRD was a British senior commando in the Royal Marines during World War II and later a Conservative politician. He was Member of Parliament for Haltemprice, East Yorkshire and subsequently for Beverley...
.
- “The story of the station reads like a soap opera with staff mutinies, beleaguered DJs, technical nightmares, and power struggles” - BBC history of Radio 270
Although the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act
Marine Broadcasting Offences Act
The Marine, &c., Broadcasting Act 1967 c.41, shortened to Marine Broadcasting Offences Act, became law in the United Kingdom at midnight on Monday, August 14, 1967 and was repealed by the...
of 1967 brought about an early end to Radio 270, its brief life served to raise Proudfoot’s public profile considerably and this may have contributed to his return to Parliament in 1970. Some of its employees such as Roger Gale
Roger Gale
Roger James Gale is a British politician. He is the Conservative Member of Parliament for North Thanet in Kent.-Early life:...
, Paul Burnett
Paul Burnett
Paul Burnett is an English radio disc jockey, who began his radio career while in the Royal Air Force in the Persian Gulf in 1964. In 1966 he joined offshore radio station, Radio 270, broadcasting off Scarborough, North Yorkshire...
and Philip Hayton
Philip Hayton
Philip Hayton is a British television presenter. He was born in Keighley in Yorkshire and was educated at Fyling Hall School, an Independent school near Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire in Northern England.-Career:...
went on to have distinguished careers in mainstream broadcasting. Maggie Lucas, the station's office manager later became secretary to the Chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Commission. It has been claimed that Radio 270 formed the factual basis for the 2009 film "The Boat That Rocked
The Boat That Rocked
The Boat That Rocked is a 2009 British comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis, with pirate radio in the United Kingdom during the 1960s as its setting. The film has an ensemble cast featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, and Kenneth Branagh...
".
Hypnotist
After leaving Parliament in 1974, Proudfoot became a regular visitor to the US where he developed an interest in hypnotism.- ”Starting in 1977 he spent many months in America acquiring his Hypnosis and Therapeutic skills at the Hypnotism Training Institute of Los Angeles with Gil Boyne” – from the Proudfoot School website
In a 2008 newspaper interview Proudfoot also stated that he had been given a facelift
Facelift
Facelift is the common name for rhytidectomy, a cosmetic surgery procedure.Facelift may also refer to:* Facelift , the revival of a product through cosmetic means such as changing its appearance...
operation in Beverly Hills in 1977. He has lectured on hypnotism and hypnotherapy at venues around the world including ones in Spain, the US and the UK. He has established the Proudfoot School of Clinical Hypnosis and Psycotherapy based in Scarborough where training courses in various aspects of hypnotism are delivered.