Alan Thornett: key obituary facts
Is Alan Thornett dead? Yes. Alan Thornett died on October 9, 2026, at age 89.
Cause of death: Alan Thornett's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Alan Thornett known for?
He was a British politician (born 1937).
More about Alan Thornett
Born: 15 June 1937.
Gender: male.
Occupation: politician.
Nationality: United Kingdom.
Alan Thornett, a British activist, car worker and Trotskyist, died October 9, 2026, aged 89.
Born on June 15, 1937, he began working in the car industry in 1959 at Plant Oxford in Cowley, Oxford. He joined the Communist Party of Great Britain there in 1960.
In 1966, Thornett and other shop stewards were recruited to Gerry Healy’s Socialist Labour League, which became the Workers Revolutionary Party in 1973. In 1974, Thornett and most of the Cowley group were expelled from the party, along with around 200 other members. He and his comrades regrouped as the Socialist Group, which in 1987 fused with the International Group to form the International Socialist Group. The ISG dissolved into Socialist Resistance in 2009. Across these organizational changes, Thornett remained active in Trotskyist politics and became a leader of the Fourth International. His political career was closely connected to the Cowley car works, where his involvement with shop stewards and the Communist Party preceded his recruitment to the Socialist Labour League. His later organizing took place through the Socialist Group and the International Socialist Group, before the latter’s dissolution into Socialist Resistance. Thornett was identified as a British Trotskyist and politician.