NEVER mind the voting vagaries of Worcester Woman, 65 years ago the eyes of the nation were on the city for a completely different reason as Britain approached its first general election after the Second World War.

A rumpus in the ruling Conservative party threatened to de-rail Tory efforts to hold on to the seat and led to the personal intervention of no less a figure than Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

At the centre of the political maelstrom was one of Worcester’s most distinguished citizens, J Basil Edwards, a much respected city solicitor and member of the city council.

Many years later when I first joined the staff of this paper as a junior reporter, I frequently encountered Basil Edwards in his role as chairman of the local magistrates bench.

Along with similar figures such as trade union leader George Massey and Dennis Caughey (nicknamed the Hanging Judge by the press corps for his visual similarity to a Wild West character) he exuded a natural air of authority and gravitas, which put the fear of God up any miscreant unfortunate enough to appear before him for cycling without lights along Deansway.

But back in 1945, Basil Edwards had his eyes on Westminster.

Problems had arisen among Worcester Conservative Party because many were dissatisfied with the performance of their sitting MP of 21 years, Australianborn Captain William Pomeroy Crawford-Greene.

He had become a distant figure and the feeling was that Worcester would be better represented by a more local person.

Things became so bad that Worcester Conservatives decided they could not support Crawford- Greene as their candidate in the forthcoming parliamentary election.

He apparently accepted the situation with good grace and so the process began to choose his successor, the constituency in those days being a safe Tory seat.

Among the names on the Worcester Conservative Association shortlist was Basil Edwards, then aged 36.

Many years later Basil Edwards gave his account of the events that followed to my colleague Mike Grundy and I am grateful for being able to refer to his notebook here.

“I was one of four or five people interviewed,” said Mr Edwards, “but the majority of the committee decided that a certain ex-military gentleman living in Worcester would be an acceptable candidate and if he was not available my name would go forward as the selected candidate.”

Apparently, Mr Edwards declined to go into exact details, but it transpired the ex-military gentleman turned out to be a divorcee, a fact which lost him the key support of a Roman Catholic on the selection panel.

“My name therefore went to the top of the list,” Mr Edwards went on, “but the chairman of the selection committee William Godsell, who was also chairman of Worcester Conservative Association, then decided I was not acceptable to him.

“This clearly had to do with the fact I had recently replaced him as chairman of the city council’s planning and post-war reconstruction committee after he had been given the boot from the post.

“Godsell said that on no account would he have me as Conservative candidate so the selection committee eventually refused to accept me, even though I had been at the top of the list.

“The immediate outcome was a rebellion in the local Conservative party with a large breakaway group sending a petition to me asking that I stand as Independent Conservative candidate.”

Evening News reports at the time say the petition was signed by “many well known citizens, including industrialists, professional people, merchants, working men and a fair proportion of members of the city council, both aldermen and councillors”.

Mr Edwards also had the support of the newspaper’s managing editor Ivor Griffiths, who ran a series of editorials backing him.

“I was formally declared as Independent Conservative candidate for Worcester around the same time Group Captain George Ward was brought into the city as the official Tory candidate,” said Mr Edwards.

However, by then the row had reached the very top echelons of the Conservative Party, which was becoming increasingly aware it would lose the seat if its vote was split.

Into the row stepped Churchill, who acted in typically decisive manner. He fired off a letter to Worcester telling the local Conservatives to sort out the matter – quickly.

“Winston Churchill stressed it was vital there should be only one Conservative candidate at Worcester,” said Mr Edwards.

“So although that Churchill letter was never shown to me, I was immediately faced with the fateful dilemma of whether to withdraw or go forward as Independent Conservative candidate.

“After much heart-searching – and it was very considerable heartsearching – I allowed my name to be withdrawn and for Mr Ward to be the sole Conservative candidate.

“Even so, I did have considerable regrets at withdrawing because some very good people had backed me and I did not wish to let them down.

“However, events proved it was just as well I withdrew as Mr Ward was elected by only four votes and after three re-counts.”

The law firm that Mr Edwards set up in 1935 with Herbert March and his son Ralph March soon became established as one of Worcester’s leading solicitors’ practices and celebrates its 75th anniversary this year.

Born and brought up in the city – he was the son of Alderman Charles Edwards and educated at the King’s School and Oxford University – Basil Edwards subsequentally served on Worcester City Council for 34 years and was a city magistrate for almost 40, being chairman of the bench for much of the time.

Asked in his retirement whether he regretted the events of the summer of 1945, Mr Edwards replied: “I have some regrets that I did not have the privilege of being elected to represent my native city, but it was clearly not meant to be.

“Fate has a way of deciding things, whether one likes it or not.”

He died in 1996.