(Henry) Frederick (Ross) Catherwood was born 30 January 1925, the son of late Stuart and of Jean Catherwood. He was educated at Shrewsbury School, then at Clare College, Cambridge. In 1954, Catherwood married Elizabeth, daughter of late Rev Dr D. M. Lloyd Jones, with whom he had two sons and one daughter.

Catherwood began his career as a qualified Chartered Accountant and held senior positions within industrial firms between 1952-74. He was Conservative Member of Parliament for Cambridgeshire from 1974-84, then a European Member of Parliament for Cambridge and North Bedfordshire from 1984-94. He held several European Parliament positions and chaired the Committee for External Economic Relations (1979-84) which considered issues such as relations with the Gulf States, limitation of imports of Japanese cars, reduction of farm subsidies, and the removal of internal trade barriers. Catherwood was also Deputy Chairman of the European Democratic Group (1983-7) and Chairman of the cross-party group on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (-1993) which aimed to reduce the CAP costs. From 1983-9 and 1993-4 Catherwood was a member of the Joint Delegation between the European Parliament and the United States House of Representatives. He was also Vice-President of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee.

Catherwood's publications include "The Christian in Industrial Society" (1964, rev. edn 1980), "The Christian Citizen" (1969); "A Better Way" (1976); "First Things First" (1979); "God’s Time God’s Money" (1987); "Pro Europe?" (1991); "David: Poet, Warrior, King" (1993) and his memoirs "At the Cutting Edge" (1995).

Sir Frederick Catherwood died on 30 November 2014.