Anthony Charles Lynton Blair was born on May 6th, 1953 in Edinburgh, Scotland, the son of Leo Blair and Hazel Blair, a barrister and a homemaker, respectively. As a small child Blair’s family moved to Glasgow, Scotland, then to Adelaide, Australia, and finally settled in Durham, England. Tony Blair spent the first part of his years in an ideal upper-middle class environment until 1963 when his father suffered a stroke, throwing the family into disarray with the breadwinner stricken ill. When young Tony Blair first received hand-me-down clothes instead of new ones, he quickly came to the realization of what life was like for the average British citizen.

After leaving Durham Cathedral School in 1971, Blair spent a year in London working at odd jobs such as driving a van and moving stage equipment for rock groups. However, Blair’s privileged education continued as he gained a partial scholarship to Fettes College in Scotland, which is sometimes called “Eton with a kilt.” Then in 1972, Blair entered Oxford where he would eventually graduate with a law degree. Tragedy struck Blair’s life again when his mother died two weeks later.

In 1975, Tony Blair joined the Labour Party where he would spend twenty-two years building a career that would eventually lead to his being elected the youngest British Prime Minister in over a hundred years.
Work History
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland -- (24 Oct. 1945)