Lt Col (Retd) Derek A. Plews BA (Hons) MA VR

Proud Ulsterman Derek Plews was a journalist before joining the Civil Service in 1985. He has worked for several Government departments and was Press Secretary to Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott and Defence Secretary, Geoff Hoon. An army reservist, Plews left the civil service in 2006 to deploy to Afghanistan in a military role. He subsequently completed tours of duty in Iraq before taking up various appointments in the Ministry of Defence. Retiring in 2020 he now divides his time between conducting historical research, visiting First World War battlefields, and volunteering as a trustee of the Bucks Military Museum Trust.