“There’s no getting around it, the man is a monster.” The words of my father, Alex Mattingly, who has died aged 88, describing the then proprietor of the Daily Mirror, Robert Maxwell, proved to be prophetic. At that time, in the 1980s, Alex was actively involved, via his work at the print union, Sogat, in negotiations with Maxwell during a period of great upheaval for the print industry. However, even Alex was surprised when the plundering of the Mirror pension fund by “the monster” was revealed when he died in 1991.
Alex’s role at Sogat was one of many. Born into a working-class trade unionist family, Alex was raised in Edmonton, north London. His father, Ernest, was a plumber and trade union activist, and his mother, Doris, looked after the home and three sons. Alex’s independent spirit was honed in his wartime evacuation to Cornwall and his keen intelligence was picked up by his superiors during his army service in India, where he was rapidly promoted to sergeant.
His political and working life started in earnest after his marriage in 1947 to fellow Labour supporter Pat (nee Gibbins), whom he first met before the war. The couple settled in Enfield, north London, and Alex took an extensive and active role within the Edmonton Labour party, providing support and encouragement to local Labour MPs and serving as a Labour councillor in Enfield for more than 20 years. His many roles included serving as president of Edmonton Labour party, secretary of Enfield Co-operative party, chair of Enfield Peace Campaign, a governor of his former school, Latymer, and of a local primary school, Fleecefield.
Alex was immensely proud in 2012 when, in recognition of his service as a councillor and to the local community, he was made an honorary freeman of Enfield.
Alex undertook many of these roles while working full-time within the print and publishing industries. He had worked at the Daily Mirror long before Maxwell acquired it, and he later worked for Reed Publishing and IPC Magazines. An excellent communicator, Alex specialised in personnel issues and rose to become an industrial relations director. These communication skills proved to be a considerable asset to Alex when he moved into his union role at Sogat and to his dealings with Maxwell.
Alex is survived by his five children, Alan, James, Jill, Susan and me, four grandchildren, one great-granddaughter and his brother, Peter.
