Some of the obituaries of John Prescott, who died on 20 November, referred to his early career as a ship’s steward. In January 1957, he found himself looking after Anthony Eden and his wife during a six-week voyage to New Zealand. Eden had just resigned as prime minister following Suez and the collapse of his health. His doctors advised a sea cruise to warmer climes.
Eden’s biographer, D.R.Thorpe, persuaded Prescott to give him an account of the voyage which he incorporated in his life of Eden, published in 2003. “Most afternoons a boxing tournament was held on deck, and the Edens were prevailed upon to be at the ringside from time to time. Eden even stepped into the ring to present prizes in the form of bottled beer to the victors, who usually included his cabin steward. Indeed, so often was Prescott on the winning side that Eden believed he deserved greater recognition for his efforts, and took to presenting him with bottles of wine in the privacy of his cabin, so as not to raise expectations elsewhere among the ship’s pugilists.”
Would John Prescott have led a more sober life if he had never met Eden? “It was good stuff”, he replied with a smile when I asked him about the wine a couple of years ago.
Alistair Lexden
December 2024
A slightly abridged version of this article was published in the obituaries section of The Times on 18 December.
