book, the endless campaigning Plimsoll lost his temper spectacularly. [shows image on projection screen] He shouted and stamped his foot and shook his fist. He called ship owners ‘murderers’ and members of the house who protected them ‘villains’. Eliza meanwhile was in the Ladies Gallery, scattering copies of his protest onto the Gentlemen of the Press who were conveniently just underneath. And he made headlines. This became the most celebrated moment of Plimsoll’s career. [shows image on projection screen] In this picture he is being restrained by a friend (the Irish MP Alexander Sullivan). There were several things that plimsoll did that broke the protocol of the house, but one was that only one member was supposed to be standing at any one time, so when Disraeli stoodup he was supposed to sit down but he refused to. So Sullivan is trying to persuade him to do that meanwhile the Speaker rises to protest behind and the leader of the opposition, Lord Hartington, look on in horror. Plimsoll was made to leave the chamber but he left shouting ‘Cheats! And I’ll expose the lot of them’. But not before he had named and shamed one man in particular â€“ this is when you can boo and hiss.

The man was Edward Bates. He was the ship owning conservative MP for Plymouth, known as ‘Bully Bates’, whose shipping company, Edward Bates & Sons, operated out of the Albert Dock in Liverpool. He owned several houses around the country, one of which was Bellefield, which was, until last