Edward Guinness who has died at 98 did not get a knighthood or a Peerage and there is no direct link to support for the Tory Party yet his long life (Times Obituary 3rd February) does illustrate what is meant by the Beerage- the once powerful brewing lobby in British life.
Guinness was the great-great-great-great nephew of Arthur Guinness and after a spell in the Army entered the family business. By the early 1970s he had responsibility for the Harp Lager brand and was a Guinness Director in the 1980s retiring in 1989.
He was a keen cricket fan and member of Lancashire CCC. When the 1970 South African cricket tour of England was cancelled because of apartheid, a Rest of the World series took place instead. Guinness arranged sponsorship and presented the winners trophy to Gary Sobers
From 1956 he became part of the Duke Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conference and went on to become Chair of the UK Trustees. He attended Prince Philip’s 90th Birthday party and regarded him as a visionary.
He married Elizabeth Thompson the daughter of Alan Thompson Chairman of Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries.
Quite a life…
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