The Official Monster Raving Loony Party (OMRLP) is a political party established in the United Kingdom in 1983 by the musician David Sutch, also known as "Screaming Lord Sutch, 3rd Earl of Harrow", or simply "Lord Sutch". It is notable for its deliberately bizarre policies and it effectively exists to satirise British politics, and to offer itself as an alternative for protest voters, especially in constituencies where the party holding a safe seat is unlikely to lose it.
David Edward Sutch, also known as 3rd Earl of Harrow, or Screaming Lord Sutch, was an English musician and serial parliamentary candidate. He was the founder of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party and served as its leader from 1983 to 1999, during which time he stood in numerous parliamentary elections. He holds the record for contesting the most Parliamentary elections, standing in 39 elections from 1963 to 1997. As a singer he variously worked with Keith Moon, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Ritchie Blackmore, Charlie Watts, John Bonham and Nicky Hopkins, and is known for his 1963 novelty hit "Jack the Ripper".
A by-election was held in the Bermondsey constituency in South London, on 24 February 1983, following the resignation of Labour MP Bob Mellish. Peter Tatchell stood as the candidate for the Labour Party, and Simon Hughes stood for the Liberal Party. Following a bitter campaign, the Liberals made huge gains and took the seat, with a majority of votes cast. Labour's vote fell from 63.6 per cent in May 1979 to 26.1 per cent as Tatchell came a distant second, while the Conservative candidate, Robert Hughes, managed only fourth place. With a swing of 44.2%, the 1983 Bermondsey by-election remains the largest by-election swing in British political history.
Alan "Howling Laud" Hope is a British politician and the Leader of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party (OMRLP). On the death of the party's founder Screaming Lord Sutch in 1999, Hope and his pet cat, Catmando, were jointly elected as leaders of the OMRLP. Since June 2002 Hope has been the party's sole leader following Catmando's death in a road accident.
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) formed in 1988 was a political party in the United Kingdom led by David Owen which lasted for only two years. The party was formed as a result of the original Social Democratic Party, created in 1981 by the "Gang of Four" voting to turn its electoral alliance with the Liberal Party into a full merger of the two parties. The new Social and Liberal Democrats (SLD) party thus gained all of the records and assets of the original SDP.
A by-election was held in the House of Commons constituency of Epping Forest on 15 December 1988, following the death of Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) Sir John Biggs-Davison. The result was a hold for the Conservative Party.
The Liverpool Walton by-election was held on 4 July 1991, following the death of the Labour Party Member of Parliament Eric Heffer for Liverpool Walton, on 27 May.
The Glasgow Camlachie by-election was held on Wednesday 28 January 1948, following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament, Campbell Stephen.
This is an annotated list of notable records from Parliamentary by-elections in the United Kingdom. A by-election occurs when a Member of Parliament (MP) vacates a House of Commons seat during the course of a parliament.
The Barking by-election was held on 9 June 1994, following the death of Labour Party Member of Parliament for Barking Jo Richardson. Richardson had represented the seat since the February 1974 general election, following Tom Driberg.
Two Bootle by-elections were held during 1990, for the House of Commons constituency of Bootle in Merseyside.
The Ealing Southall by-election, 2007 was a by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Ealing Southall, in west London. It was held on 19 July 2007.
The Brecon and Radnor by-election, 1985 was a parliamentary by-election held on 4 July 1985 for the British House of Commons constituency of Brecon and Radnor.
The Sedgefield by-election, 2007 was a by-election held on 19 July 2007 for the British House of Commons constituency of Sedgefield in County Durham. The Ealing Southall by-election was also held on 19 July.
The Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 1936 was a by-election held from 27 to 31 January 1936 for the Combined Scottish Universities, a university constituency of the British House of Commons.
The 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election was a by-election held in the United Kingdom on 10 July 2008 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for constituency of Haltemprice and Howden. The by-election was triggered by the surprise and controversial resignation from the House of Commons of the sitting MP David Davis on 12 June 2008. Davis's stated intention was to spark a wider public debate on the perceived erosion of civil liberties in the UK by recontesting his seat on this single issue platform, launched as the David Davis for Freedom campaign. The two other main political parties Labour and the Liberal Democrats declined to field candidates, Liberal Democrats as they supported Davis in this issue and Labour as they considered the election a "political stunt".
The Newcastle-under-Lyme by-election, 1986 was a parliamentary by-election held on 17 July 1986 for the British House of Commons constituency of Newcastle-under-Lyme.
The Rotherham by-election was a by-election for the Parliament of the United Kingdom's House of Commons constituency of Rotherham. The by-election was caused by the resignation of its Member of Parliament Denis MacShane after the House of Commons Standards and Privileges Committee found that he had submitted 19 false invoices "plainly intended to deceive" the parliamentary expenses authority, an issue dating back to 2009 and a wider parliamentary expenses scandal in the UK. MacShane accepted the office of Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds on 5 November 2012, formally vacating his seat. The election took place on 29 November 2012, at the same time as by-elections in Croydon North and Middlesbrough which were caused by the deaths of the sitting MPs.
Lord Toby Jug was a British politician. He was the leader of the Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire branch of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party, serving as the party's media officer and a prospective parliamentary candidate, until being expelled from the Loony Party in 2014. He founded The Eccentric Party of Great Britain in 2015.
3,303 candidates stood in the United Kingdom general election of 2017, which was held on 8 June 2017. The deadline for parties and individuals to file candidate nomination papers to the acting returning officer was 16:00 on 11 May 2017.
