David Thomson (bishop)


David Thomson, is a British retired Church of England bishop. From 2008, he was the Bishop of Huntingdon, sole suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Ely.

Early life

Thomson was born in Sunderland, County Durham, where his father, Ronald, was assistant curate; the family moved to the Sheffield area two years later. David was educated at King Edward VII School, Sheffield, followed by Keble College, Oxford, where he was awarded his Oxford Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in 1978. He trained for the ministry at Westcott House and Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he studied theology.

Ordained ministry

Thomson was made a deacon at Petertide 1981 and ordained a priest the Petertide following – both times by David Lunn, Bishop of Sheffield, at Sheffield Cathedral. He served as assistant curate in the Maltby, South Yorkshire team ministry, and then Team Vicar of St Mary's Church, Banbury, Team Rector of Cockermouth and finally, before being ordained to the episcopate, the Archdeacon of Carlisle and a canon residentiary of Carlisle Cathedral.

Episcopal ministry

Thomson was consecrated as a bishop by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, in Southwark Cathedral on 3 July 2008 and installed as Bishop of Huntingdon in Ely Cathedral on 17 October that year. During a lengthy vacancy in neighbouring Suffolk's diocesan see from 20 October 2013 to 7 May 2015, he was also the Acting Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. He retired on 30 September 2018.

Academic career

A medieval historian, Thomson is a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and the Royal Historical Society as well as an FRSA. His academic works include A Descriptive Catalogue of Middle English Grammatical Texts and An Edition of the Middle English Grammatical Texts. His most recent work was on the Bewcastle Cross. He has also published a series of devotional books, A Journey with John, Lent with Luke, Christmas by Candelight and Ways to Pray.

Personal life

Thomson has been married since 1974, with four children; his interests include detective fiction, crosswords, gardening, photography and fine art.

Styles