Horatio Bottomley

Over several decades, Horatio Bottomley was a figure that was simply larger than life. Frequently sued for fraud or slander, he always defended himself in court and usually won. He was elected as a Member of Parliament and published the John Bull magazine from 1906, which he used to feed the need for the everyman to have someone tear down and attack society's institutions. Bombastic, arrogant and opinionated are only a few views of him as are eloquent, influential and revered. There is little doubt however that he was also a swindler with his many schemes subsidizing his lavish lifestyle; he strongly believed in mixing business and pleasure wherever possible. He was eventually convicted of fraud and spent a long term in prison after which he could not recover his past glory. He died in 1933.