Lembit Öpik

Lembit Öpik (/ˈlɛmbɪt ˈoʊpɪk/, Estonian: [ˈlembit ˈøpˑik]; born 2 March 1965) is a British politician. A member of the Liberal Democrats, he served as a member of parliament (MP) representing the constituency of Montgomeryshire in Wales from 1997 until he lost his seat at the 2010 general election. He was the leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats from 2001 to 2007.

Öpik stood unsuccessfully for the position of president of the party in 2004 and 2008. He was also unsuccessful in a bid to become the Liberal Democrats' nominee in the 2012 London mayoral election.

Beyond his political work, Öpik has also been in the public eye through his appearances on several television shows, and as a result of his personal relationships with ITV weather presenter Siân Lloyd and with pop star Gabriela Irimia of The Cheeky Girls, which drew considerable media attention.

Early life

Öpik's parents were from Estonia, but after the Soviet occupation under Joseph Stalin, they fled to Northern Ireland. Öpik was born in Bangor, County Down, the elder son of Liivi Öpik (née Vedo) and physicist Dr Uno Öpik (19 October 1926 – 6 May 2005), and grew up there with sister Urve Öpik (born 1960, a psychotherapist) and brother Endel "Tal" Öpik (12 April 1968 – 21 November 2005, a musician). His grandfather was Ernst Julius Öpik, an Estonian astronomer who worked at Armagh Observatory.