Professor Philip Lord Norton of Louth is Professor of Government and Director of the Centre for Legislative Studies at the University of Hull. He has been a Conservative Life peer in the UK House of Lords since 1998.

Please tell us a little bit about how you entered academia and your academic career

I have been interested in politics, and especially Parliament, since I was about 11, and it has been a consuming passion ever since. When I got to university, I realised that an academic career – researching and teaching – was my vocation and I have spent my life disseminating knowledge about politics. Even in the Lords, I see my role as essentially educational. I got my first permanent academic post at Hull in 1977 and I was fortunate to be promoted early – I achieved a personal professorship when I was 35. The campus is ideal as a working environment and I have not been that interested in being lured from it.

Which five books/articles (written by someone else) have been most important to you in your academic career?

I’m not sure I could confine it to five. There have been so many that have influenced me, not least those that have shaped how we think about politics, but none that I would isolate as creating a ‘Eureka’ moment – more like lots of mini-Eurekas along the way. Mind you, I may have an ‘I forgot Goschen’ moment and suddenly realise – probably in the middle of the night – that there is one obvious work, so obvious that it has escaped me completely.

Which person/people has/have been most influential/important to you in your academic career?

I think the three most important in terms of encouraging me and enabling me to go further have been three people, sadly no longer with us: my PhD supervisor, Stuart Walkland, the Hull VC when I got my chair, Professor Bill Taylor, and my long-time Hull colleague, Professor Jack Hayward.

Which of your own pieces of research are you most proud of?

My early research of dissension in the House of Commons, my analysis of party groupings in the Parliamentary Conservative Party, and – the standard answer – my latest book (Governing Britain). I got particular enjoyment from researching, not least because of the archival research involved, the history of the 1922 Committee.

What has been your greatest achievement in academia?

I think I would opt for getting my chair when I did, though being fortunate enough to get my initial appointment to Hull ranks alongside that. I almost missed the invitation to an interview. I had been away and only found it when I returned on a Sunday. The interview was the following day! Had I missed it life would have been very different.

What has been your greatest disappointment in academia?

I can only think of one and I am not telling! I still hope that it will be rectified…

What is the first or most important thing you tell your students about parliaments?

That Parliaments matter because politics matter.

Where were you born, where did you grow up, and where do you live now?

Louth, Lincolnshire – my family were firmly rooted in the county – and I retain my links with the town. I have been a governor of my old school, Louth King Edward VI Grammar School, for more than thirty years and am presently in my second stint as Warden of the School. Upon my appointment to the Department in Hull, I moved to the city – I was made an honorary Freeman in 2016 – and since getting my peerage have divided my time between living in Hull and London.

What was your first job?

Temporary Lecturer in Politics at the University of Sheffield. I interrupted my PhD at the university to complete a Master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania as a Thouron Scholar and while there got a letter asking if I would take up a temporary lectureship on my return to fill in for Dr Noah Lucas who was on research leave.

What was the toughest job you ever had?

Possibly being head of department and taking over at a difficult time when the previous head suddenly quit. I took it on at short notice while not only maintaining my full teaching load, but also while chairing the House of Lords Constitution Committee.

What are your hobbies?

Don’t have much time for hobbies as such – when I said politics was my consuming passion I should have said all-consuming. I do, though, enjoy travelling (of which more below). As an inveterate tea-drinker, I love finding tea-shops, in essence anywhere that serves good tea and has character, which can range from a station cafeteria to Betty’s or the Goring Hotel. I also find time for dining out with friends and the occasional theatre visit.

What is your favourite music?

Classical music is the Rolls Royce of music in that it is designed to last. Since the 1960s, modern music has increasingly demonstrated built-in obsolescence. It is so ‘here today, gone tomorrow’ that I don’t keep up with it anymore.

What are your favourite pieces of artwork?

Dutch Old Masters, largely as a result of discovering the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

What is your favourite building?

The obvious I’m afraid – the Palace of Westminster. It has the awe-inspiring effect intended by Barry and Pugin. Even now, when it is seriously showing signs of its age, it continues to have the same impact when I walk in as it did on the first day I turned up as a member.

What is your favourite tv show?

Top of a lengthy (and somewhat eclectic) list is ‘Yes, Prime Minister’, largely for the wonderful combination of humour and politics as well as the scripts and casting. To my mind, the best episode is ‘The Key’. I still play episodes and will regularly quote from it.

What is your favourite holiday destination?

Don’t do traditional holidays – haven’t done one since I was about 21 – but love travelling, usually undertaken when going to deliver conference papers or speak at parliaments. Travelled to different continents – most remarkable experience was when I was in Mexico and had a four-man bodyguard throughout my stay – but especially jump at opportunities to deliver papers at venues within Europe because I can get there by train. I do occasionally get away for a weekend break – usually to Amsterdam, Edinburgh or Paris.

What is your favourite sport?

Don’t have one in terms of watching. In terms of playing, I played table-tennis competitively when I was young – among other things Louth town champion, junior champion (have the shields to prove it), participant in some national tournaments, and captain of the University team. I still have my captain’s tie.

Boothroyd or Bercow?

Pass. They are both friends of mine.

Restoration or Renewal?

Like the dictionary, have trouble with the ‘or’.

Cat or Dog?

Cat.

Fish and chips or Curry?

Fish and chips.

Tea or coffee?

Tea. Lots of it.

Planes, trains or automobiles?

Trains. Hate planes, love trains.

And, finally, a question asked by 8-year-old Seth: Would you rather walk on Lego in your socks for five minutes, or talk to the most boring person in the world for an hour?

I have no experience of walking on Lego, with or without socks (though, given how accident prone I am, it is always possible), whereas I am well experienced at talking to the most boring person in the world for an hour or more. I would opt for the latter as I know I can listen while mentally writing an article.

Photo by Chris McAndrew (used under license CC by 3.0)