Thomas Stuttaford
Encyclopedia
Dr Irving Thomas Stuttaford OBE
, (born 4 May 1931) is a British
doctor
, author
, medical columnist
of The Times
and former Conservative
Member of Parliament
. In 2002 he retired as Senior Medical Advisor for Barclays Bank.
for Norwich South. In two subsequent elections he was selected as the conservative candidate in the Isle of Ely
to oppose Clement Freud
who had won the seat in a by-election
in 1973 after the death of Sir Harry Legge-Bourke
. Freud later increased his majority in the first 1974 election
. Dr. Stuttaford, previously member for Norwich South, was selected to oppose him for the second general election
and fought him again in 1979
. In both elections Freud's majority was reduced but although in this election Dr. Stuttaford received the highest number of Conservative votes ever recorded in the constituency, the collapse of the Labour vote ensured that Freud was again returned.
medical correspondent and later its medical columnist, worked for The Times from 1982 until January 2009. Stuttaford continues to write a regular monthly column for The Oldie
and is a frequent contributor to Healthspan, an online retailer of vitamin supplements, and occasionally to other national newspapers and journals. He has been accused by Dr Ben Goldacre
in The Guardian
of using an article in The Times to promote energy replacement pills that appear to have nothing more than a placebo
effect. He has been parodied
in the satirical
magazine Private Eye
as 'Dr Thomas Utterfraud'.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, (born 4 May 1931) is a British
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...
doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, medical columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
and former Conservative
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...
Member of Parliament
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. In 2002 he retired as Senior Medical Advisor for Barclays Bank.
Politics
From 1970 to 1974 Stuttaford was the MPMember 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,...
for Norwich South. In two subsequent elections he was selected as the conservative candidate in the Isle of Ely
Isle of Ely (UK Parliament constituency)
Isle of Ely was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, centred on the Isle of Ely in Cambridgeshire...
to oppose Clement Freud
Clement Freud
Sir Clement Raphael Freud was an English broadcaster, writer, politician and chef.-Early life:Freud was born in Berlin, the son of Jewish parents Ernst Ludwig Freud and Lucie née Brasch. He was the grandson of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud and the brother of artist Lucian Freud...
who had won the seat in a by-election
Isle of Ely by-election, 1973
The Isle of Ely by-election, 1973 was a parliamentary by-election held on 26 July 1973 for the British House of Commons constituency of Isle of Ely....
in 1973 after the death of Sir Harry Legge-Bourke
Harry Legge-Bourke
Major Sir Edward Alexander Henry Legge-Bourke KBE was a British politician.He served alongside Jock Colville as a Page of Honour from 1926. Educated at Eton College and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Legge-Bourke was commissioned into the Royal Horse Guards in 1934. He served there throughout...
. Freud later increased his majority in the first 1974 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,...
. Dr. Stuttaford, previously member for Norwich South, was selected to oppose him for the second general 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...
and fought him again in 1979
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
. In both elections Freud's majority was reduced but although in this election Dr. Stuttaford received the highest number of Conservative votes ever recorded in the constituency, the collapse of the Labour vote ensured that Freud was again returned.
Medical journalism
Dr Thomas Stuttaford, formerly The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
medical correspondent and later its medical columnist, worked for The Times from 1982 until January 2009. Stuttaford continues to write a regular monthly column for The Oldie
The Oldie
The Oldie is a monthly magazine launched in 1992 by Richard Ingrams, who for 23 years was the editor of Private Eye. It carries general interest articles, humour and cartoons, and has an eclectic list of contributors, including James Le Fanu, John Sweeney, Thomas Stuttaford, Virginia Ironside,...
and is a frequent contributor to Healthspan, an online retailer of vitamin supplements, and occasionally to other national newspapers and journals. He has been accused by Dr Ben Goldacre
Ben Goldacre
Ben Michael Goldacre born 1974 is a British science writer, doctor and psychiatrist. He is the author of The Guardian newspaper's weekly Bad Science column and a book of the same title, published by Fourth Estate in September 2008....
in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
of using an article in The Times to promote energy replacement pills that appear to have nothing more than a placebo
Placebo
A placebo is a simulated or otherwise medically ineffectual treatment for a disease or other medical condition intended to deceive the recipient...
effect. He has been parodied
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
in the satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
magazine Private Eye
Private Eye
Private Eye is a fortnightly British satirical and current affairs magazine, edited by Ian Hislop.Since its first publication in 1961, Private Eye has been a prominent critic and lampooner of public figures and entities that it deemed guilty of any of the sins of incompetence, inefficiency,...
as 'Dr Thomas Utterfraud'.
Books
- To Your Good Health!: The Wise Drinker's Guide, Faber and Faber Ltd, 1997, ISBN 0-571-19095-2
- The Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide: UK Edition (Editor), Cassell reference, 2003, ISBN 0-304-35719-7
- What's up Doc? Understanding your Common Symptoms: Health Matters, Little Books, 2003, ISBN 1-904435-02-5
- Stress and How to Avoid It, Little Books, 2004, ISBN 1-904435-09-2
External links
- The Times column
- Peter Allan Sichel Memorial Lecture given by Stuttaford to the Wines and Spirit Education Trust
- Critical review of To Your Good Health! on the Institute of Alcohol Studies site
- Somewhat disputed article regarding mental and sexual health
- The Oldie Magazine