Sir Chris Bryant: 'I felt phenomenal shame about being sexually abused'
"It was fascinating for me, because the book stops in 2001 when I was first elected, so it's about my early life," he told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast."It's about the tough stuff when I was a kid, growing up with my parents. My mum was an alcoholic and the pain and the horror… and the challenges that poses for you as an individual."The rows, the guilt, the anger, the lies and recriminations, and then eventually mum's death."All of that is part of the story, but also some very funny stories."
Speaking about his choice to share details of being the victim of abuse, by Michael Croft but also in separate incidents later in his life, Sir Chris says it was "a really important part" of authentically documenting his life story."It's one of the stories that I hadn't even really told any of my family until very recently, because I suppose I felt phenomenal shame about it. I remember when I did first tell family members, I was in tears for ages," he said."This may seem bizarre, for many young people in particular these days, but it's a story of a young person growing up in an age where homosexuality was completely illegal. It was completely illegal when I was born, partially decriminalised in 1967, but still looked on with terrible shame and disgust by the vast majority of society through most of my formative years."Telling that whole story as honestly as I possibly can was important... It's not the complete story of Chris Bryant without that story in it, to be honest."I suppose part of what my book is there to do is to try and explain an age that I hope has gone, and has gone forever."
Leaving his role as a Church of England priest and moving to London as "a young gay man, discovering the freedom of the great city", working for the Labour Party, Sir Chris recounts many a humorous encounter with famous faces. He met Peter Mandelson, now British Ambassador to the United States, in the changing room at the YMCA gym and they became friends."I was in Peter's flat… he had two phone lines and one phone rang and it was Gordon Brown, so he spoke to Gordon and then the other phone rang, I answered it and it was Tony Blair," he recalled."Peter switched – he went to speak to Tony Blair while I talked to Gordon Brown – and I think that was the moment when Peter made his decision about who he was backing for the leadership."On another occasion, while Sir Chris was dating a Spanish architect living in Madrid, Mandelson decided to stay with him and attend the final rally in socialist leader Felipe Gonzalez re-election campaign."At the end, I thought we were going to be introduced to my political hero, Felipe Gonzalez, but instead Peter said 'No, I want to meet him over there' – so went and chatted to Antonio Banderas for half an hour instead," he said with a laugh. "Who, it has to be said, was a very handsome young man."
In the book, Sir Chris says he doesn't think Tony Blair "ever really trusted or rated me".Pressed on why he'd made this claim, he says that for several years, people would predict his appointment to a minister role in Blair's cabinet reshuffle, only for him not to be offered any such position."One year, Tony called me in afterwards to his office in parliament and said 'really sorry Chris, you're one of our best people, definitely next time'. "A year goes by, another reshuffle, I'm not appointed to anything and Tony calls me again and does the same routine."He said 'definitely next time, you're in your 20s, you've got your whole life ahead of you, but you don't look happy' and I said 'no, because you told me all this last year and, secondly Tony, I'm not in my 20s, I'm 43'."So I always had a great time for him, I thought he was a great prime minister, but I disagreed with him about some significant matters."
In an interview with BBC veteran broadcaster Patrick Hannan when he was first elected as an MP in 2001, Sir Chris was described as an "exotic" choice - something he's never forgotten."I think they meant too gay," he says.But no label has deterred him from striving for authenticity, he says, adding his attitude is summed up by a Spanish word with Arabic roots that he "absolutely adores" - ojalá [I wish]."Some of it stems from the powerlessness I felt through my mum's alcoholism, some of it is learnt because of what I saw under Mrs Thatcher and my early days in the Labour party, some of it is the passionate belief in things when I was a priest in the Church of England."That sense of fairness and that belief that we really could make a better world if we all actually worked on it, I suppose that's the thing that burns in me."If you have been affected by the issues raised in this story you can visit the BBC Action Line for details of organisations who can offer support.
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Write to letters@ Sir, You argue in your leading article 'From Me to You' (Aug 14) that it is 'morally wrong' to levy inheritance tax on 'those who have worked hard throughout their lives to earn something to pass onto the next generation', but the biggest slice of inherited wealth is in the form of a house sale. The amount of income used to acquire a house depends mainly on the size of the mortgage at the time the house was bought — that is, its historic value — not on what it is sold for as part of probate, its current value. An adjustment for inflation may be appropriate, but there is no reason a house should be tax-exempt because its deceased owner 'worked hard to acquire it'.Peter Curwen Leeds Sir, For Rachel Reeves, wealth is a sin and she intends to tax it like other sinful behaviours. Sin taxes have a long history in reducing activities that politicians disapprove of. Sin taxes on smoking, drinking and driving have succeeded. 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Having worked for more than 40 years and contributed to a pension in the belief that this would relieve the state of any responsibility for me in old age, I am now confused. Obviously I don't know how long I may live, but in the hope it may be a reasonably long time I have invested in UK stocks and shares, both to protect my family and to promote UK stocks and shares. All of us have benefitted, but now I must re-evaluate. Several of my options include selling the UK stocks and shares. Reeves has said she wants pension funds to invest more in the UK stock market, but how will her policies encourage that?Paul Mitchell Thédirac, France Sir, The proposal to 'tighten' rules on the seven-year exemption to IHT on gifts is odd ('Budget may tighten rules on inheritance tax', Aug 13). We seem to have forgotten the reason for this relief, which is to encourage growth. Essentially, it is better for growth for elderly people to pass on assets to younger people who will use them. A simple example is an older person taking cash from their bank and giving it to their child to buy a house. This results in work for estate agents, surveyors, solicitors and contractors, as well as a tax contribution in stamp duty and VAT. For a pro-growth government, to remove the incentive to give these gifts seems HardsBlakeney, Norfolk Sir, John Stewart says (Thunderer, Aug 13) that the proliferation of cycle lanes on main roads is because priority is given to cyclists making longer trips, at the expense of people using side-roads for shorter journeys. The reason priority is given to main roads is that they are where cyclists are in most danger. In many places outside London, it is impossible to make even short journeys without using main roads. I agree, though, that the design of cycle lanes needs review. Bumps and bollards that separate cycle lanes from vehicle lanes are hazards, as are jay-walking pedestrians and car passengers opening doors without looking. Some cycle lanes at junctions are so labyrinthine that they are difficult for both pedestrians and cyclists to navigate. The sad fact is that at present some cycle lanes are so badly designed that it is often safer, and certainly quicker, to avoid SpenceSale, Cheshire Sir, The residents of Streatham Hill are due to suffer more than a year of roadworks as Transport for London and Lambeth council reduce the motor vehicle capacity of the A23 to a single lane. The reason is that it is safer for cyclists and pedestrians to create a segregated cycle lane with floating bus stops and reduce access from residential side roads. I believe that if they wanted to keep everyone safe — and save money — they could ban cyclists from this stretch of the A23 and direct them to the low-traffic neighbourhood along the southbound carriageway. 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If the present vicar wishes to find the burials of Alfred's brothers, I suggest a careful research excavation on either side of the high Tatton-BrownSalisbury Sir, The discussion about the remains of his family brings into focus the location of Alfred himself. After his death, in 899, he was buried in Old Minster, Winchester. He was then moved to New Minster, the church built by his son, King Edward, as the dynastic focus for the family. The Norman destruction of both minsters led to the building of Hyde Abbey, just outside the walls of the city, as the 'final' resting place for Alfred, Edward and other family members. Sadly, Hyde Abbey fell victim to Henry VIII. Alfred's grave was lost until 1788, when the building of a bridewell on the site led to its rediscovery. The authorities allowed the bones to be lost around the building site. So we can now say with some confidence that the bones of Alfred and his immediate family lie scattered and shattered adjacent to the entrance to River Park in Hyde. We have long lobbied Winchester city council for a proper commemoration of Alfred and the story of the abbey in Hyde Gate, almost the last remaining original building within the abbey FennellFounder, Hyde900Winchester Sir, Further to your article 'Rolls-Royce's UK plans go nuclear' (Business, Aug 14), I have no doubt Rolls-Royce's aero-engine business will remain remarkably successful but its enthusiasm for land-based small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) is commercially misplaced. Firstly, SMRs are essentially experimental prototype scale-ups. I would be surprised if savvy companies such as Google and Amazon were contemplating reliance on experimental tech. Secondly, authoritative research by academics at the University of Pennsylvania, in a paper published in May 2022, demonstrated that SMR radioactive waste is harder to handle than waste from Gigawatt-sized nuclear David LowryInstitute for Resource and Security Studies, Massachusetts, US Sir, Alice Thomson calls for 'honest but calm dialogue' about migration (Comment, Aug 13). She concedes that 'some Islamic countries don't share western values', but understates in my opinion how big a barrier that is to integration. The schism between Catholicism and Protestantism endured for BickleyHuntingdon, Cambs Sir, In response to your question 'Which artist best captures the true spirit of Britain — in a single frame?', (Times2, Aug 15), surely Banksy's Girl with Balloon, his powerful 2002 mural, best encapsulates the nation's sentiments in these troubled times. It was voted the nation's favourite in 2017 and, as well as being one of his most famous works, it is also one of Banksy's most optimistic, as the original mural was accompanied by the words: 'There is always hope.'Adrian BrodkinLondon N2 Sir, Your excellent article overlooked Walter Sickert. Over his long and prolific career, he painted ordinary British people at the music hall and in grimy bedsits. He reinvented himself more than once and has influenced and inspired many who came later. My choice would be BostonKingshill, Kent Sir, David Hockney has spent a great deal of his time on British landscapes, most notably Garrowby Hill, and his innovative artwork on the iPad is ClarkeRye, E Sussex Sir, Anthony Roberts (letter, Aug 14) brings to mind the warning attributed to Henry Longhurst that 'If you call on God to improve the results of a shot while it is still in motion, you are using an outside agency and subject to appropriate penalties under the rules of golf.'John Murray Compton Chamberlayne, Wilts Sir, A friend of my parents had his bicycle stolen. It was found two days later and, being a good Catholic, he went to church to thank St Anthony. On leaving church, he found that it had been stolen YoungSouthampton Sir, Public statues in London have always been controversial, for many reasons (News, Aug 8, and letters, Aug 13 and 14). In 1937, a decision was made to site the memorials to Admiral Jellicoe and Admiral Beatty in Trafalgar Square, which required moving the statues of General Napier and Major General Havelock, and there had even been discussions about moving William IV from his plinth to an island at Virginia Water. It was all too much for Sir Patrick Duff, secretary of the Office of Works, who was still reeling after controversies about the statue of Field Marshal Haig on Whitehall. In a letter to the first commissioner, Sir Philip Sassoon, in January 1938, Duff fumed that the best site for all statues was at the bottom of the CrellinThorner, W Yorks Sir, Marion Brown's letter (Aug 13) revived an old misapprehension of my own. As a child I had a box of watercolour paints with the printed name of the tint under each pan. Owing to inconsistency in the printing I was convinced for many years of the existence of the colour Clive DorrPlymouth Write to letters@
