Sir Peter spent the 1955 election campaign driving around Britain with Sir Anthony and his wife Clarissa, ''still alive and very well and hearty at 93’’, writing speeches. ''I would go into his bedroom about 7am, and he’d be in bed with Clarissa. She would be in curlers – in those days women wore curlers – she would take one look at me with her head under the bedclothes and say, 'Oh my God, it’s that boy again.’’’ A promising political career beckoned, but Sir Peter was only paid £12 by the Conservative Research Department and had no money. ''My father was then in his seventies and worked on a coffee estate for someone in East Africa, and I knew I would have to support both of my parents.’’ So he went to work for a stockbroker as a half commission agent. He was given a list of institutions and told that the brokers had earned £3,670 from them in commission the previous year. In his first year, Sir Peter put the commission up for his list from £3,670 to £100,000. He was promoted to partner. ''I was, I believe, the youngest partner on the London stock exchange.’’