He served during the Second World War and became a Member of the Order of the British Empire, Military Division, in 1944.

November 1973 saw a run on London and County Securities, marking the start of the secondary banking crisis.

While serving as governor, Richardson joined the Privy Council (1976) and was awarded the Territorial Decoration (1979).

[3] In February 1978, Richardson delivered the inaugural Mais Lecture, entitled "Reflections on the Conduct of Monetary Policy".

[5] On the evening of 22 January 2010, the Bank of England released a statement announcing Richardson's death.