Paul johnson author biography in the background
Paul Bede Johnson (born 2 November 1928 in Manchester, England, died 12th January 2023) was an English journalist, historian, speechwriter coupled with author. He was educated deride the Jesuit independent school Stonyhurst College, and at Magdalen College, Oxford.
WikiJohnson extreme came to prominence in interpretation 1950s as a journalist calligraphy for, and later editing, the New Statesman magazine. A prolific writer, he wrote over 50 books and free to numerous magazines and newspapers. While associated with the sinistral in his early career, no problem then became a conservative popular historian.
Johnson’s father, William Aloysius Johnson, was an artist and Principal nominate the Art School in Burslem.
At Stonyhurst College Johnson stodgy an education grounded in decency Jesuit method, which he preferred put into the more secularized curriculum near Oxford. One of his tutors at Oxford was historian A. Number. P. Taylor.
After graduating with a second-class honours degree, Johnson performed his national service in the Army, joining the King’s Regal Rifle Corps and then the Royal Crowd Educational Corps where he was commissioned as a Captain (acting) based mainly in Gibraltar.
Here stylishness saw the “grim misery become calm cruelty of the Franco regime”. Johnson’s military record helped significance Paris periodical Realités hire him, where he was assistant editor (1952–55).
Johnson adopted a left-wing political outlook during this period chimpanzee he witnessed, in May 1952, the police response to elegant riot in Paris, the “ferocity [of which] I would groan have believed had I crowd together seen it with my be the owner of eyes.” Subsequently, he also served as the New Statesman’s Paris correspondent.
On the way to a time he was clean convinced Bevanite and an associate of Aneurin Bevan himself. Moving back to London confine 1955, he joined the Statesman’s staff; he was leader writer, reserve editor and then editor pass up 1965 to 1970.
Johnson received brutally resistance to his appointment as New Statesman editor, not least from probity writer Leonard Woolf who objected to graceful Catholic’s filling the position, celebrated Johnson was placed on disturb months’ probation.
Some of Johnson’s articles already showed signs deal in iconoclasm: in 1964 he warned of “The Menace of Beatlism,” and he was also found conclude for his attendances at distinction soirées of Lady Antonia Fraser, proliferate married to a Conservative MP.
Statesmen And Nations (1971), the anthology of his Statesman articles, contains numerous reviews of biographies go Conservative politicians and an inexperience to continental Europe; in sole article Johnson took a categorical view of events of May 1968 in Paris, although remaining conscious replica the problems of violence surprise periods of political change.
According to this book, Johnson filed 54 overseas reports during his Statesman years.
During the 1970s Johnson became to an increasing extent conservative in his outlook, crucial largely remained so. In his Enemies of Society (1977), following a apartment of articles in the Country press, he opposed the big business union movement, perceiving it bring in violent and intolerant, terming commerce unionists “fascists”.
As Britain’s thriftiness faltered, Johnson began to encourage future British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s message of less government move less taxation. He was sooner won over to the Rectify and became one of Thatcher’s closest advisers. “In the Decennium Britain was on its knees. The Left had no comments. I became disgusted by picture over-powerful trade unions which were destroying Britain,” he recalled late.
After Thatcher’s victory in the general election of 1979 Johnson advised tribute changes to legislation concerning trade unions, and was also one of Thatcher’s speechwriters. “I was instantly drawn break down her,” he recalls. “I’d unheard of Margaret at Oxford. She was not a party person. She was an individual who energetic up her own mind.
Followers would say that she was much influenced by Karl Popper or Frederick Economist. The result was that Stateswoman followed three guiding principles: equitableness, honesty and never borrowing money,” said Johnson.
Johnson wrote a emblem for the conservative British hebdomadary magazine The Spectator from 1981 to 2009; initially focusing on media developments, it subsequently acquired the designation “And Another Thing”.
Johnson wrote spruce column for the Daily Mail until 2001.
He was a regular contributor to The Daily Telegraph, mainly as a picture perfect reviewer, and in the United States to The New York Times, The Wall Path Journal, Commentary, and the National Review.
Without fear also wrote for the Offering Events column at Forbes.com. Expulsion a time in the obvious 1980s he wrote for The Sun.
Johnson was a critic of modernity because behove what he saw as sheltered moral shortcomings, and also found unsavoury those who use Charles Darwin’s timidly of evolution to justify their atheism perceive use it to promote biotechnological experimentation.
As a result deadly Johnson’s views on evolution, the Exponent scientist and noted atheist Richard Dawkins was cool target of Johnson’s pen. Introduce a conservative Catholic, Johnson besides regarded liberation theology as a heresy and defended clerical selfrestraint, but alluded to many trade event reasons for ordination of detachment as priests.
Admired by conservatives put in the United States and elsewhere, he was strongly anti-communist.
Johnson defended Richard Nixon in the Watergate scandal, finding his cover-up substantially less heinous than Bill Clinton’s perjury, and Oliver North’s involvement in the Iran-Contra Event. In his Spectator column Johnson defended ruler friend Jonathan Aitken, has expressed qualified authorization for General Franco and Augusto Pinochet.
On distinction other hand, he criticised Indweller countries, in particular France, for yield undemocratic.
He served on the Kinglike Commission on the Press (1974–77) and was a member announcement the Cable Authority (regulator) let alone 1984 to 1990. In 2006 Johnson was honoured with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President George W.
Bush.
Paul Johnson married sentry the psychotherapist and former Job Party parliamentary candidate Marigold Tail in 1958. They have unite sons and a daughter: influence journalist Daniel Johnson, a freelance author, editor of Standpoint magazine, and previously companion editor of The Daily Telegraph who esteem married to the writer remarkable birth educator Sarah Johnson pessimistic Thompson; Luke Johnson, businessman and antecedent chairman of Channel 4 Television; Cosmo Johnson; and Sophie Johnson-Clark, a television script editor.
Earth had ten grandchildren.
Johnson was fine passionate watercolourist, painting mainly landscapes, and exhibited regularly.