Devon and Cornwall Police have confirmed a full murder investigation is underway following the death of 78-year-old former UK Conservative Member of Parliament and public figure Ann Widdecombe, who was discovered unresponsive at her southwest England home Thursday. The former prisons minister was found at her residence in Haytor, a small village located on the boundary of Dartmoor National Park, and had sustained significant unexplained injuries at the time of her discovery, law enforcement officials confirmed in an official public statement Friday. Investigators are currently actively searching for a male suspect in connection with her death, and have appealed for any local witnesses with information about recent activity in the area to come forward to assist with the inquiry.
Across the UK political spectrum, leaders and former colleagues have offered tributes to Widdecombe, who built a 23-year career in the House of Commons spanning from 1987 to 2010 before transitioning to a public profile in entertainment and continued Euroskeptic political activism. Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the news of her death deeply shocking, urging the public and political community to set aside longstanding ideological differences to prioritize supporting the investigation and Widdecombe’s grieving loved ones. “This is really shocking news, and my thoughts, I think all of our thoughts, will be with the family and friends of Ann Widdecombe at this awful time,” Starmer said. “Ann was a distinguished politician over many, many years with many achievements, and it’s a huge, huge loss.”
Widdecombe, who was widely known for her unapologetic socially conservative views including opposition to abortion rights and expanded protections for LGBTQ communities, retained a prominent public profile after leaving elected office. She rose to new mainstream fame as a contestant on two of Britain’s most popular reality television programs, *Strictly Come Dancing* and *Celebrity Big Brother*, before returning to partisan political work. After backing the successful 2016 Brexit campaign, she joined the Brexit Party and later took on a prominent role as a spokesperson for Reform UK, the right-wing anti-immigration party that remains active in British politics today.
Former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson joined those honoring Widdecombe’s legacy Friday, describing her as a “heroic Brexiteer and a great speaker who could move Tory audiences to such ecstasy that she was a very hard act to follow.” Cloud9 Management, the firm that represented Widdecombe for public and commercial work after she left Parliament, highlighted the core values that shaped her decades of public life. The organization noted that her career and personal choices were rooted in devout Christian beliefs and a lifelong commitment to public service, adding that she remained politically active long after leaving elected office. “She loved the cut and thrust of political debate and, 16 years after leaving Parliament, was still actively campaigning for Reform UK and offering forthright views on the hot topics of the day,” the company said, sharing a quote that reflected Widdecombe’s well-known approach to life: “‘we get one go this side of eternity, one go. Life is not a dress rehearsal, you take opportunities that you like and you go for it, that’s my philosophy’.”