Jonathan Bowden

Early life and formal education

Bowden was born in Kent, England, and attended Presentation College in Reading, Berkshire. His mother died when he was at the age of 16. In 1984, he completed one year of a Bachelor of Arts history degree course at Birkbeck College, London University, as a mature student, but left without graduating. He subsequently enrolled at Wolfson College, Cambridge University, in autumn 1988, but left after a few months.

Conservative Party

He began his political career in London as a member of the Conservative Party in Tower Hamlets, as a member of the Bethnal Green and Stepney Constituency Association. In October 1990 he joined the Conservative Monday Club, and the following year made an unsuccessful bid to stand for its Executive Council. In May 1991, he was appointed co-chairman with Stuart Millson of the club's media committee. During the early 1990s, he stated that he had been the deputy chair of the Western Goals Institute although this cannot be verified. In 1992, Bowden was expelled from the Monday Club.

Revolutionary Conservative Caucus

Bowden and Stuart Millson co-founded the Revolutionary Conservative Caucus in November 1992 with the aim of introducing "abstract thought into the nether reaches of the Conservative and Unionist party". The group published a quarterly journal entitled The Revolutionary Conservative Review. By the end of 1994, Millson and Bowden parted company and the group dissolved.

In 1993, Bowden published the book Right through the European Books Society. He was also reported to be a prominent figure in the creative milieu responsible for the emergence of Right Now! magazine.

Freedom Party

Bowden then joined the Freedom Party, for which he was treasurer for a short time, and subsequently in company with Adrian Davies was a member of the Bloomsbury Forum.

British National Party

In 2003, Bowden broke with attempts to influence Conservatism and moved into political activity by joining the British National Party (BNP), becoming a popular speaker. He was appointed Cultural Officer, a position its leader Nick Griffin created to give Bowden officer status within the organisation. However, in July 2007, Bowden resigned and left the BNP.

Although he resumed public speech-making at BNP organised meetings in the localities away from the party's national events, he never re-joined the party and cut all ties after the May 2010 general election.

Art

Bowden was an outsider artist. These are collected in three book volumes, which also include his early graphic novels and comic strips as well as his later work.

Film

He appeared in two avant-garde films, Venus Flytrap (2005) and Grand Guignol (2009), both directed by the Italian film-maker Andrea Lioy.

Death

Bowden died of heart failure at his home in Berkshire on 29 March 2012, aged 49.

Books by Jonathan Bowden

Other Books