Statement on 02 May 2025.
This morning, less than a week before the 80th anniversary of VE Day, I was humbled to be invited to join the annual reunion of the members of the Victoria Cross & George Cross Association: the living recipients of Britain’s highest awards for gallantry. Knowing that it would soon close, these heroes had decided to gather at the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the Imperial War Museum and asked me to be there to mark the occasion. I was honoured to accept.
Until the Museum decided, without informing me, that it intended to close the Gallery which predominantly displays my personal collection of more than 200 VCs and GCs, which I have loaned to the IWM for the last 15 years, the Imperial War Museum had held a special place in my heart.
In addition to loaning my collection of VCs and GCs, I had donated £5 million towards the cost of commissioning and maintaining the Gallery, which was opened in November 2010 by the Princess Royal. I became a Trustee of IWM, and also a Trustee of its fundraising body. Unbeknownst to me, I discovered that IWM had made an audio recording of the memories of my late father, Eric Ashcroft, recalling his part in the D-Day landings of 1944. Listening to him speak of his experience was exceptionally moving.
As far as I was concerned, I was a good friend of IWM and one of its biggest supporters. After my death, I had hoped that my irreplaceable collection of VCs and GCs might be displayed permanently at the Museum. Sadly, that will now be elsewhere.
This morning, observing heroes who were present in the Gallery marvelling at the exploits of heroes who are no longer with us made me determined that the Gallery stay open for the complete duration of my agreement with IWM. In other words, it should close not on May 31, but on September 30. This will enable families to visit during the school holidays, and be open for visitors to London for the 80th anniversary of VJ Day on August 15.
Accordingly, I have written today to the Trustees of the Museum to ask that the full term of our agreement be respected. I am hopeful that they will agree. However, if not, I firmly intend to ask the courts to intervene. In the meantime, I trust that the Museum will not resort to any precipitation of the Gallery closure by invoking a termination of our agreement. That could not possibly be in the public interest, and it will be resisted.
