Cherie Blair (Cherie Booth QC) was born in Bury in 1954 but moved when very young to Liverpool where she grew up. The first member of her family to go to university, she studied law at the London School of Economics before training as a barrister. Called to the Bar in 1976, she became a Queens Counsel in 1995 and is a founder member of Matrix Chambers.

Her fellow trainee at her first barristers’ chambers was Tony Blair. The couple married in 1980 and have four children.

As well as fighting for human rights in her professional career, Cherie is an active campaigner on equality and human rights issues. She has spoken across the world on both issues and also on the need for improved work/life balance for both women and men.

In 2008, Cherie set up the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. The Foundation works with women in Africa, South Asia and the Middle East, helping them generate their own income and developing projects which encourage them to become successful and self sustaining entrepreneurs. Cherie is also closely involved with over 20 charities with a special emphasis on those working with women, with children, and with those based on Merseyside.

Cherie has been a member of the Labour Party since she was 16. In 2008 she published her autobiography, ‘Speaking for Myself.’