Former UK minister who had home in Roscommon remembered
The late Sir Patrick Duffy at Cruby Hill, Roscommon (on left) with John Kennedy and Joe Tiernan.
Sir Patrick Duffy KSG, who had strong connections to County Roscommon and believed to have been the oldest living former parliamentarian, died peacefully last week aged 105.
Born in Wigan on June 17th, 1920 to Irish parents, James and Margaret Duffy from County Mayo, he was raised in Doncaster but maintained a deep and lifelong connection to Ireland. He also had a home at Cruby Hill, Roscommon Town where he spent much of his time.
Sir Patrick served in the Fleet Forces in the Second World War, where, at 23, he survived a near fatal plane crash as Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands where he was administered the last rites. He went on to fly further missions.
He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Colne Valley from the 1963 Colne Valley by-election until his defeat in 1966, and for Sheffield Attercliffe from the 1970 general election until his retirement in 1992.
He served as a defence minister in the Callaghan government from 1976 to 1979 having previously been a parliamentary private secretary to the Secretary of State for Defence.
After Labour’s defeat in 1979 he served as opposition spokesman for defence from 1979 – 1981 and again from 1983 – 1984.
Sir Patrick was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. Duffy, who was a lifelong Catholic was also given a papal knighthood in 2017. His Catholicism led him to an anti-abortion stance and he was President of the Labour pro-life group.
More recently, his second book ‘From Wigan to Westminster: Hot Wars, Cold Wars and the Carrier Strike Groups’ – reflections on his long political life and commentary on contemporary issues – was published in 2024, making him the second-oldest published author in the world.
In a statement, his family described him as “an extraordinary man with a lifetime of accomplishments.”
Sir Patrick passed away on January 2nd.
