Bill Westwood

William John Westwood (28 December 1925 – 15 September 1999) was the 36th Anglican Bishop of Peterborough.[1]

Life

Memorial to William John Westwood, Peterborough Cathedral

Born at Saul, Gloucestershire, Westwood was educated at Grove Park Grammar School, Wrexham and Emmanuel College, Cambridge.[2]

After ordination as a deacon in 1952, Westwood was appointed curate of Holy Trinity Church, Kingston upon Hull. He was then Rector of Lowestoft; Vicar of St Peter Mancroft, Norwich (1965–75) and an honorary canon of Norwich Cathedral. He became the Bishop suffragan of Edmonton in the Diocese of London[3] from his consecration on 24 June 1975 by Donald Coggan, Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral.[4] From the creation of the London area scheme in 1979, he was the first area bishop,[5] remained in that See until his translation to Peterborough in late 1984. He was enthroned at Peterborough Cathedral on 12 January 1985,[6] but had become Bishop of Peterborough before that point,[7] with the confirmation of his canonical election to that See near the end of 1984. He retired as Bishop of Peterborough in December 1995.[8]

He was the chairman of the Church of England's Committee for Communications, President of the Church Housing Association, a member of the Board of Governors of Nene College and an honorary fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge from 1989 until his death.

Westwood was a regular contributor to Thought for the Day on BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He was a member of the Press Council (1975–81), the IBA Panel of Religious Advisers (1983–7), the Video Consultative Council (1985–9) and the Broadcasting Standards Council (1988–92).

Following his death a memorial slab was erected in the south aisle of Peterborough Cathedral to his memory.

Family

Westwood's son is the British radio hip-hop DJ Tim Westwood.[9]

References

1. "No. 54456". The London Gazette. 4 July 1996. p. 9013.
2. 'WESTWOOD, Rt Rev. William John', Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2015; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014
3. "No. 46592". The London Gazette. 6 June 1975. p. 7289.
4. "New suffragans consecrated". Church Times (#5863). 27 June 1975. p. 3. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 9 March 2016 – via UK Press Online archives.
5. "4: The Dioceses Commission, 1978–2002" (PDF). Church of England. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 June 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
6. "New bishop tells diocese 'be open'". Church Times (#6362). 18 January 1985. p. 3. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 9 March 2016 – via UK Press Online archives.
7. "Advert: a video for Christmas!". Church Times (#6357). 14 December 1984. p. 19. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 9 March 2016 – via UK Press Online archives.
8. "Signs of a resilient Church". Church Times (#6930). 8 December 1995. p. 4. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 9 March 2016 – via UK Press Online archives.
9. "Obituary: The Right Rev William Westwood". The Independent. 17 September 1999.

External links

• Obituary from The Independent