Leslie O'Brien, Baron O'Brien of Lothbury

The Right Honourable The Lord O'Brien of Lothbury GBE PC
Governor of the Bank of England
In office 1966–1973
Preceded by	The Earl of Cromer
Succeeded by	Gordon Richardson
Personal details
Born	Leslie Kenneth O'Brien 8 February 1908 Dulwich, London
Died	24 November 1995 (aged 87) Redhill, Surrey, England
Resting place	Tandridge, Surrey, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Banker

Leslie Kenneth O'Brien, Baron O'Brien of Lothbury GBE PC (8 February 1908 – 24 November 1995) was Governor of the Bank of England.

After attending Wandsworth School in London, he joined the Bank of England in 1927 and rose through the ranks, becoming Chief Cashier in 1955, Deputy Governor in 1966, before serving as Governor from 1966 until 1973.

As Governor, O'Brien presided over the devaluation of the pound in 1967.

He became a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in 1967^[1] and was appointed to the Privy Council in 1970.^[2] Following his retirement as Governor in 1973 he was created a life peer as Baron O'Brien of Lothbury, of the City of London.^[3]

He married firstly Isabelle Pickett (1908–1987) in 1932, and secondly Marjorie Taylor (born 1923) in 1989. He died in Tandridge, Surrey, in 1995.

Arms

Arms of Leslie O'Brien, Baron O'Brien of Lothbury

Coronet A Coronet of a Baron Crest In front of two Keys in saltire Azure a Needle point downwards proper threaded Gules Escutcheon Gules bezanty three lions passant guardant in pale each per pale Or and Argent Supporters On either side a Lion guardant per fess Or and Argent in the mouth a Key Or standing upon a Heap of Coins Or and Argent Motto Calm in Adversity

Footnotes

1. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 44210. p. 10. 30 December 1966. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
2. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 44999. p. 1. 30 December 1969. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
3. The London Gazette: no. 45930. p. 3513. 16 March 1973. Retrieved 2009-11-06.

References

• Middlemas, Keith (27 November 1995). "Obituary: Lord O'Brien of Lothbury". The Independent. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
• Middlemas, Keith (May 2006). "O'Brien, Leslie Kenneth, Baron O'Brien of Lothbury (1908–1995)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/60373. Retrieved 2009-11-06. (subscription or UK public library membership required)

External links

• Obituary: Lord O'Brien of Lothbury from The Independent