Death by Buller
Such excess, however conducive to a career in politics or industry (see below), has to come at a cost. Unsurprisingly, given its penchant for intoxication, brawling, and vandalism, the lawless club is associated with several deaths, and not just of its own members. Some have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time during a Bullingdon outing, associated themselves with members of the club, or developing lethal habits whilst a member. The most notorious Bullingdon member in this respect is Count Gottfried von Bismarck (1962-2007), great-great-grandson of the famous German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck.
At Oxford, von Bismarck developed a reputation even amongst the Bullingdon for inconceivable excess. Clad in lederhosen or women’s clothing, the flamboyantly gay aristocrat was a dangerous man, possessing a seductive glamour and ‘no moral conscience whatsoever’ according to a fellow Bullingdon member. He would take amphetamines throughout the day to aid concentration, and drink heavily every night, frequently throwing lavish dinners at which pig heads (those again!) were served. Like David Cameron, von Bismarck was simultaneously a member of the Piers Gaveston, but Oxford proved insufficient to his taste for decadence, and so he spent weekends partying in London.
In 1986, Olivia Channon, an heiress and daughter of a serving Tory MP, was found dead in von Bismarck’s Christ Church rooms of a heroin overdose. The Count escaped with merely an £80 ($113) fine, and was sent to rehab by his parents. Though he went on to run several German telecommunications companies, his decadent lifestyle continued. In 2006, one particularly wild orgy at von Bismarck’s London flat ended with a man falling 20 metres to his death. Von Bismarck was found dead in 2007, with the highest levels of cocaine in his body that the pathologist had ever seen.
In 1977, another Bullingdon member was directly involved in the deaths of four people. Bartholomew Smith was the son of John Smith, a Conservative politician and wealthy banker, and at 22 was a wildly out of control Bullingdon man. Smith was returning from a club dinner, ‘considerably intoxicated’ according to the prosecution at his trial, and travelling at almost 100 mph in his Maserati, when he lost control of the car. Veering into oncoming traffic, his car collided with another vehicle, killing all four occupants. The driver of the unlucky car was footballer Peter Houseman, returning from a charity event.
In the light of the Bullingdon’s ludicrous evasion of criminal proceedings, perhaps it was Houseman’s public profile as an ex-Chelsea footballer that saw Smith brought to trial. Incredibly, Smith was not breathalysed at the scene of the accident, and so despite the testimony of a doctor who examined him, the defence team successfully argued that there was insufficient proof to convict the defendant of drink-driving. Despite four previous driving convictions, Smith escaped with a ten-year driving ban and a £4, 000 ($5, 639) fine. His irresponsible behaviour – drunk or otherwise – tragically orphaned six children, to say nothing of the deceased.
