Matt Ridley

The Viscount Ridley
Ridley in 2018
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
as an elected hereditary peer
8 February 2013 – 17 December 2021[a]
Preceded byThe 13th Earl Ferrers
Succeeded byThe 3rd Baron Strathcarron
Chairman of Northern Rock
In office
April 2004 – October 2007
Preceded bySir John Riddell
Succeeded byBryan Sanderson
Personal details
Born
Matthew White Ridley

(1958-02-07) 7 February 1958 (age 66)
Northumberland, England
Political partyConservative
Spouse
(m. 1989)
[1]
Children2
Parents
RelativesRose Paterson (sister)
Residence(s)Blagdon Hall, Northumberland
EducationEton College
Alma materUniversity of Oxford (BA, DPhil)
OccupationJournalist, businessman, politician
Known for
Awards
Employer
Other titles9th Baronet (of Blagdon)
Websitemattridley.co.uk Edit this at Wikidata
Scientific career
ThesisMating system of the pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) (1983)
Doctoral advisorChris Perrins[4]

Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley, DL, FRSL, FMedSci (born 7 February 1958),[3][1] is a British science writer, journalist and businessman. He is known for his writings on science, the environment, and economics,[5] and has been a regular contributor to The Times newspaper. Ridley was chairman of the UK bank Northern Rock from 2004 to 2007, during which period it experienced the first run on a British bank in 130 years. He resigned, and the bank was bailed out by the UK government; this led to its nationalisation.[6]

Ridley is a libertarian,[7] and a staunch supporter of Brexit.[8] He inherited the viscountcy in February 2012 and was a Conservative hereditary peer from February 2013, with an elected seat in the House of Lords,[9][10][11] until his retirement in December 2021.[12]


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  1. ^ a b "Ridley, 5th Viscount". Who's Who. Vol. 2007 (online Oxford University Press ed.). A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ "Northumberland Lord-Lieutenant". Northumberland County Council. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Dr Matthew Ridley FMedSci". Academy of Medical Sciences. 2004. Archived from the original on 15 July 2016. Specialities: interpreting genomics and conveying genetics to the public, especially how genes and environment interact
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference dphil was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "World's top thought leaders". Real Clear Science. 2013.
  6. ^ "Ridley quits as Northern Rock chairman". the Guardian. 19 October 2007. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
  7. ^ Monbiot, George (23 October 2007). "Governments aren't perfect, but it's the libertarians who bleed us dry". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 23 October 2007.
  8. ^ The Times, January 2017 [1]
  9. ^ "Ex-Northern Rock chairman Ridley joins Lords". BBC News. 6 February 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  10. ^ "Viscount Ridley: Spoken material by date". Parliamentary Business. 2013.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference FisherRidley2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ "Viscount Ridley". UK Parliament. Retrieved 18 December 2021.