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| Since 1997 he has been married to ]. He has two sons from a previous marriage, and two stepsons from his present marriage. | Since 1997 he has been married to ]. He has two sons from a previous marriage, and two stepsons from his present marriage. | ||
| Meyer, when asked (in an interview with the BBC) "Which foreign government has the most influence on Washington?" he unequivocally responded: "Israel." He was then asked: "And then?" He then said: "Well, in the hit parade I think Israel is in a class of its own..." . | |||
| Meyer was Independent Director, as well as Chairman of the Board of GlobeTel Communications Corp.(AMEX:GTE) until March 2006. He then became Chairman of the International Advisory Committee.<ref name="resignation>{{cite web |url=http://www.forbes.com/businesswire/feeds/businesswire/2006/02/17/businesswire20060217005442r1.html |title= Sir Christopher Meyer to Become Independent Director of GlobeTel Communications, Relinquishes Role as Chairman |accessdate= 2006-10-01|author= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=]}}</ref> | Meyer was Independent Director, as well as Chairman of the Board of GlobeTel Communications Corp.(AMEX:GTE) until March 2006. He then became Chairman of the International Advisory Committee.<ref name="resignation>{{cite web |url=http://www.forbes.com/businesswire/feeds/businesswire/2006/02/17/businesswire20060217005442r1.html |title= Sir Christopher Meyer to Become Independent Director of GlobeTel Communications, Relinquishes Role as Chairman |accessdate= 2006-10-01|author= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=]}}</ref> | ||
Revision as of 13:02, 20 December 2006
Sir Christopher Meyer, KCMG (born 22 February 1944) is a former British Ambassador to the United States (1997-2003), and the current chair of the Press Complaints Commission (since 2003).
Meyer was born in 1944 to Reggie Meyer and his wife Eve. Reggie was a Flight Lieutenant in the RAF who was killed in action four days before his son was born. Meyer was educated at Lancing College and Peterhouse, Cambridge. On the advice of his director of studies, historian Maurice Cowling, he applied to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, where he was employed from 1966.
His first posting, at the age of 24, was as third secretary to the British embassy in Moscow in 1968. Other service included a posting to Spain (1970–1973), heading the political section of the embassy to the Soviet Union (1982–1984), he was a Visiting Fellow at Harvard University's Centre for International Affairs (1988-1989), press secretary to Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs Sir Geoffrey Howe and Prime Minister John Major (1993–1995), a short stint as British Ambassador to Germany (1997), and finally British Ambassador to the United States from 1997 until his retirement in 2003.
In 1998, Her Majesty the Queen appointed him Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG).
He published his memoirs, DC Confidential, in November 2005, with extracts serialised in The Guardian and the Daily Mail. Meyer was criticised for an "unacceptable" breach of trust by the UK Government for releasing the book.
Since 1997 he has been married to Catherine Meyer (née Laylle). He has two sons from a previous marriage, and two stepsons from his present marriage.
Meyer, when asked (in an interview with the BBC) "Which foreign government has the most influence on Washington?" he unequivocally responded: "Israel." He was then asked: "And then?" He then said: "Well, in the hit parade I think Israel is in a class of its own..." .
Meyer was Independent Director, as well as Chairman of the Board of GlobeTel Communications Corp.(AMEX:GTE) until March 2006. He then became Chairman of the International Advisory Committee.
Books
- Christopher Meyer (2005), DC Confidential, Weidenfeld & Nicolson. (ISBN 0-297-85114-4)
References
- "Sir Christopher Meyer". Retrieved 2006-10-01.
- "Sir Christopher Meyer to Become Independent Director of GlobeTel Communications, Relinquishes Role as Chairman". 2006-02-17. Retrieved 2006-10-01.
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External links
- The Guardian, Sir Christopher Meyer's memoirs
- Denis MacShane, hostile critique of Sir Christopher and his book from a recent UK Foreign Office minister.
- GlobeTel Communications Corp., Web page
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded bySir John Kerr | British Ambassador to the United States 1997–2003 |
Succeeded bySir David Manning |
 | This article about a person involved in governance in the United Kingdom or its predecessor states is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it. |