Civil Rights hero receives a belated honour…

| Readers 49

Nice turn of phrase from former Tory MP Matthew Parris in The Times today…

Struggles produce heroes whose names fade after their cause prevails, but Mr [Jeffrey] Dudgeon’s should never be forgotten: the Beflast shipping clerk who – because homosexuality remained a criminal offence in Northern Ireland – took the UK Government to the European Court of Human Rights (boo!) and won (hooray!).

Westminster changed the law two decades ago and in the last New Years honours Mr Dudgeon was appointed MBE. Speaking at his celebration dinner he described being presented to Princess Anne at the investiture at Buckingham Palace. The question assumed a deeper meaning than she knew: “Have you come a long way?”

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