His route to No 10 has been one of twists and turns, from lively student days, decades in law to a late career change.

Keir Starmer, one of four children, was brought up in the town of Oxted on the Kent-Surrey border.

He was raised by his toolmaker father and nurse mother, who suffered from a debilitating form of arthritis known as Still’s disease.

Sir Keir has spoken about the challenges of growing up at a time of high inflation in the 1970s.

“If you’re working class, you’re scared of debt,” he said during the election campaign.

“My mum and dad were scared of debt, so they would choose the bill that they wouldn’t pay.” The choice was the phone bill.

Sir Keir had a lot going on in his younger years.

He was obsessed with football (on the centre-left of midfield, of course). He was a talented musician and learnt violin with Norman Cook, who went on to become chart-topping DJ Fatboy Slim.

Sir Keir also had a rebellious streak. He and his friends were once caught by police illegally selling ice-cream on a French beach to raise cash.

But what about politics? There were always clues, including his name which was given to him as a tribute to the first leader of the Labour Party, Keir Hardie.

Sir Keir dabbled in left-wing politics over the course of his pre-parliamentary life.

That started at school, when he joined the Young Socialists, Labour’s youth movement.

After school, Sir Keir became the first person in his family to go to university, studying law at Leeds University and later at Oxford.

At Leeds, he was influenced by the indie music of the 1980s, from The Smiths and The Wedding Present to Orange Juice and Aztec Camera.

His biographer, Tom Baldwin, notes his favourite drink as a student was a mix of beer and cider - or Snakebite - and he had a taste for curry and chips.

For a while after graduating, Sir Keir lived above a brothel in north London.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    0·
    12 days ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Three years ago Sir Keir Starmer seriously considered quitting as Labour leader.It was 2021 and his party had just lost the Hartlepool by-election to Boris Johnson’s Conservatives.

    His party has gone from a historic thumping at the general election in 2019 – to victory in 2024.The Hartlepool result though, is a reminder that Sir Keir’s journey to Downing Street was far from straightforward.

    At Leeds, he was influenced by the indie music of the 1980s, from The Smiths and The Wedding Present to Orange Juice and Aztec Camera.His biographer, Tom Baldwin, notes his favourite drink as a student was a mix of beer and cider - or Snakebite - and he had a taste for curry and chips.For a while after graduating, Sir Keir lived above a brothel in north London.

    While others refused to serve under Mr Corbyn, Sir Keir stayed in the tent and helped persuade the leader to back a second Brexit referendum at the 2019 election.That election was a disaster for Labour.

    But that started to change after the first reports of Downing Street parties during the pandemic, when strict restrictions were in place around social gatherings.There is a clear point in the polls where Labour overtakes the Conservatives in November 2021.

    But she is unlikely to play as prominent a role in public life as some partners have in the past.Sir Keir though has been candid about the impact high office could have, particularly on his teenage son and daughter.

    The original article contains 1,329 words, the summary contains 245 words. Saved 82%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • Theme@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    0·
    12 days ago

    Did you know Kier father was a toolmaker? I’d never heard that before, maybe Kier should start mentioning it.