Damian Green
A centrist Conservative MP and Cabinet minister whose career was defined by loyalty, moderation, and a dramatic fall from grace.
Born 1956 (age 70)·British politician·Birthday: January 17·Baby Boomers
Biography
Damian Green’s political story is one of steady ascent within the Tory establishment, punctuated by abrupt scandal. Elected as MP for Ashford in 1997, he built a reputation as a thoughtful, One-Nation Conservative, rising to become a close ally of Prime Minister Theresa May. His appointments as First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office in 2017 marked the peak of his influence, positioning him as a de facto deputy. However, his career was upended later that year when he was investigated for allegedly making inappropriate advances toward a journalist and for possessing pornography on his parliamentary computer. Green denied the more serious allegations but admitted misleading statements about what he knew of the pornography, leading to his resignation. His exit removed a key stabilizing figure from May's government and underscored the volatile nature of modern political life.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Damian was born in 1956, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Damian Was Born
The biggest hits of 1956
#1 Movie
The Ten Commandments
Best Picture
Around the World in 80 Days
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Damian's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1956Born
Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $10,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Heartbreak Hotel" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
1961Started school
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1969Became a teenager
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1972Could drive
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1974Could vote
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Turned 21
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1986Turned 30
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1996Turned 40
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 50
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 60
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 70
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office, effectively the Deputy Prime Minister, from June to December 2017.
- Held the position of Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2010 to 2012.
- Elected as Member of Parliament for Ashford, serving continuously from 1997 until he stood down in 2024.
- Acted as a key campaign strategist and close political confidant to Prime Minister Theresa May.
Did You Know?
Before politics, he worked as a journalist for the BBC and as a business editor for Channel 4 News.
Green was the first Conservative MP to have his parliamentary office raided by police in 2008 during a leak investigation (he was later cleared).
He is a published author, having written a biography of the novelist and Tory MP Jeffrey Archer.
He studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at Balliol College, Oxford.
“A stable economy and a cohesive society are not opposing forces; they depend on each other.”
