Michael Davie (15 January 1924 – 7 December 2005) was a British journalist. Born in

Cranleigh Cranleigh is a village and civil parish, about southeast of Guildford in Surrey, England. It lies on a minor road east of the A281, which links Guildford with Horsham. It is in the north-west corner of the Weald, a large remnant forest, the m ...

, Surrey, Davie was the last of three children born to the head of a firm of stockbrokers. He was educated at Haileybury and Merton College, Oxford, where he began reading English, but after war service in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

, returned to study History. Before he graduated, Davie was offered a job as diplomatic correspondent by

David Astor Francis David Langhorne Astor, CH (5 March 1912 – 7 December 2001) was an English newspaper publisher, editor of ''The Observer'' at the height of its circulation and influence, and member of the Astor family, "the landlords of New York". E ...

, editor of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'', but the post had been filled by the time he had left Oxford University. After a brief period at the ''

Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...

'', he joined ''The Observer'' in 1950 as religious correspondent. Davie subsequently became the newspaper's news editor, sports writer and editor of the colour supplement when it was first published in 1965. Close to Astor, he was appointed deputy editor of the newspaper, a position he retained until 1969. He then returned to writing, still on ''The Observer'' staff, where he edited the 'Notebook' feature. Davie was the editor of the diaries of novelist

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires '' Decl ...

; the volume appeared in 1976. That year he won the ''

What the Papers Say ''What The Papers Say'' is a British radio and television series. It consists of quotations from headlines and comment pages in the previous week's newspapers, read in a variety of voices and accents by actors. The quotes are linked by a scri ...

'' 'Journalist of the Year' Award. In 1977, he settled in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia, where he became Associate Editor of ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory ...

'', becoming the newspaper's editor in 1979, a post he retained until returning to London and ''The Observer'' in 1981 for the remainder of his career. Davie retired in 1988. Following his retirement, he wrote a biography of the press baron Lord Beaverbrook with his wife which was published in 1992. His other books include a study of President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

''LBJ'' (1966); ''In the Future Now'' (1972), a contemporary account of the social changes and sun-rise industries in California; ''The Titanic'' (1986) and (with his son Simon) ''The Faber Book of Cricket'' (1987). His final completed book was ''Anglo-Australian Attitudes'' published in 2000. Michael Davie married twice, his wife from 1975 was the writer and journalist Anne Chisholm. With his first wife (Robin Atherton) he had a son and two daughters, and an adopted son (who predeceased him) with his second. Davie died in December 2005 in

Ewelme Ewelme () is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, north-east of the market town of Wallingford. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,048. To the east of the village is Cow Common and to the ...

, Oxfordshire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davie, Michael 1924 births 2005 deaths Alumni of Merton College, Oxford British male journalists People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College