Maggie's favourite bobby lands job at auction house

A FORMER Houses of Parliament policeman who used to escort Margaret Thatcher to her seat in the House of Lords has started a new job with Cotswold auctioneer Moore Allen & Innocent.

As a Parliament police officer, one of Ben Farrier's jobs was to escort Baroness Thatcher from her car to her seat in the Lords.

"When she was finished, she would request me personally. I'd have to stop whatever I was doing and escort her back to the car. We were on very friendly terms," said Ben.

Ben was also tasked with security of the Prime Ministers office in the House of Commons.

The room had to be checked several times a day, bringing Ben into close contact with David Cameron, Gordon Brown, and Tony Blair.

He also used to take tea with John Major – both grew up in South West London and attended Rutlish School, although the former premier graduated a few years before Ben started.

When Ben retired from the Metropolitan Police after 25 years' service – 15 on the beat in Wimbledon, policing the tennis tournament and Epsom Races as well as community policing, and ten years at Parliament – and moved to the Cotswolds with his seven dogs.

He started attending Moore Allen & Innocent's Cirencester auctions to bid on furniture on behalf of a dealer, and was bitten by the antiques bug.

When the offer of a part-time job as a porter came up – a position that involves shifting furniture and antiques into, out of, and around the sale room – he jumped at the chance.

"I love it here," said Ben.

"The people are great, it's a nice working environment, and it keeps me active."

Auctioneer and valuer Philip Allwood said: "With his Metropolitan Police training Ben has all the qualities we look for in an employee – reliable and dependable, good with members of the public, and team player.

"And having learned from the experience of all those prime ministers, he's adept at shuffling cabinets."