Edith Parnell (1913 – 13 November 1938), known to friends as Bunny, was a Welsh swimmer and journalist. In 1929 she became the youngest known person to swim across the
Bristol Channel.
Early life and the Bristol Channel
Edith Gertrude Parnell was the daughter of Mr and Mrs F. R. Parnell of
Penarth.
['' Western Mail'', 14 November 1938, p.12]
In 1928, Parnell was already known as a distance swimmer, supporting other young women on attempts to cross the Bristol Channel. On 15 August 1929, at age 16, she became the second person to swim the Bristol Channel, swimming from Penarth to
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...
in 10 hours, 15 minutes. She remains the youngest person ever to have made the crossing.
Journalism and advertising
She later became the first woman reporter for the
Reuters News Agency
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was estab ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
and
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, and the first woman editor of a Sunday newspaper. She was later editorial manager of
Higham's advertising agency. She handled publicity for Higham clients, including
Coty,
Imperial Chemical Industries, and the "Bread for Energy" campaign. She attended a convention of the
Advertising Federation in Boston in 1936, and was the only woman delegate at the convention,
representing the London-based Regent Advertising Club. She also spoke to the
Rotary Club of
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
in 1936, on the topic "Public Relations from a Woman's Standpoint."
Personal life
Parnell married the Welsh journalist
Hugh Cudlipp
Hubert Kinsman Cudlipp, Baron Cudlipp, OBE (28 August 1913 – 17 May 1998), was a Welsh journalist and newspaper editor noted for his work on the ''Daily Mirror'' in the 1950s and 1960s. He served as chairman of the Mirror Group group of ...
in April 1936, though the marriage was not a success. She was simultaneously in love with
Tom Darlow
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in '' Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
, editor of ''
John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of the United Kingdom in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter- ...
'', and kept up an affair with him.
She died on 13 November 1938, aged 25 years, after complications from a
Caesarean section in a
Harley Street clinic.
Parnell's story partly inspired the novel ''Wonder Girls'' (2012) by Catherine Jones.
References
External links
Schoolgirl Swims Bristol Channel Reuters Newsreel, 1929
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parnell, Edith
1913 births
1938 deaths
Welsh female swimmers
Welsh journalists
Welsh women journalists
Welsh women editors
British newspaper editors