Betty Boothroyd: Funeral held for first woman Commons Speaker

The funeral of Betty Boothroyd, the first female Speaker of the House of Commons, has taken place.

West Yorkshire-born Baroness Boothroyd, who served as Speaker from 1992 to 2000, died in February aged 93.

She was the Labour MP for West Bromwich West from 1973 to 2000 and became a baroness in the House of Lords in 2001.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and current speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle were among those at the service in Cambridgeshire.

"Today we come together from across the political spectrum to remember one of our greatest Speakers - the remarkable Betty Boothroyd," the Prime Minister tweeted.

"Parliament stands taller because of her service."

Sir Keir called Baroness Boothroyd an "inspiration".

"A devoted public servant, Betty was at the forefront of a generation of women who smashed the glass ceiling for female politicians," he tweeted.

"She will be dearly missed by all in politics."

The service was held at the 12th Century St George's Church in Thriplow, the village where she lived in her later years.

Four pallbearers carried Baroness Boothroyd's coffin, adorned with a white floral tribute, into the stone church as organ music played.

The service concluded with the congregation singing The Battle Hymn Of The Republic.

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab and Deputy Labour Leader Angela Rayner stood in for Mr Sunak and Sir Keir respectively during Wednesday's Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons.

Speaking after the service, Sir Lindsay described Baroness Boothroyd as one of the "greatest women" he had ever known and said he will always be "in awe".

"She supported me to become Speaker and she always gave me advice, whether I wanted it or not, Betty would ring up and just put me right," he said.

"She smashed that glass ceiling to smithereens, she became the first and only woman speaker we've ever had.

"Didn't she climb some hills, from Yorkshire to the hills of Westminster, she took every challenge in her stride and didn't she know how to do it."

The Reverend Angela Melaniphy, who led the service, said Baroness Boothroyd had planned the service and "chosen all the music".

"The entry music was Climb Ev'ry Mountain sung by Dame Patricia Routledge, who was a very close friend of Baroness Betty Boothroyd's," she said.

"What was lovely about it was that her family was there, her very close friends were there, members of the village were there and members of Parliament were there - it was a service that included all of her life and each part of that reflected how highly she was regarded."

Betty Boothroyd was born on 8 October 1929 in Dewsbury and was the only daughter of mill workers.

Growing up in a political environment - her father was a trade unionist - she described herself as coming "out of the womb into the Labour movement".

Baroness Boothroyd was a professional dancer from 1946 to 1948 and appeared in pantomime in London's West End before going into politics.

She then took a number of office jobs, working for the Labour MP Barbara Castle and on the campaign to elect John F. Kennedy as US President.

In May 1973, after several attempts, she entered Parliament, securing the seat of West Bromwich, later renamed West Bromwich West.

After nearly two decades in Parliament she was elected by her fellow MPs to the position of Speaker of the House of Commons - a job which involves presiding over proceedings in the chamber.

She stepped down from the position in 2000, but continued to be active in politics - calling for a statue in central London to commemorate the part women played in World War Two.

She was also passionately involved in the campaign to keep the UK in the EU.

Ms Melaniphy added: "In the country she was known to many people as Baroness Boothroyd, in Parliament she was Madam Speaker, but to us she was simply Betty."

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