Marjorie Deane (1914 – 2 October 2008) was a British financial journalist and author, who worked for ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...

'' from 1947 to 1989, and has been called "a pathbreaker for female financial journalists" by

Paul Volcker Paul Adolph Volcker Jr. (September 5, 1927 – December 8, 2019) was an American economist who served as the 12th chair of the Federal Reserve, chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1979 to 1987. During his tenure as chairman, Volcker was widely ...

, the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve.

Early life

Marjorie Deane was born in 1914 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

. She was educated there at

Withington Girls' School Withington Girls' School is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Fallowfield, Manchester, United Kingdom, providing education for girls between the ages of seven and eighteen. Withington is a member of the Girls' School ...

, followed by a degree in mathematics at

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

Career

During the Second World war, Deane worked as a

statistician A statistician is a person who works with Theory, theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private sector, private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, a ...

for the Admiralty, where she reported to the poet

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

, who would become a friend. Deane worked for ''

'' from 1947 to 1989, and in the magazine's obituary of Deane, she was described as "the backbone of ''The Economist''s financial coverage". She was initially hired as a statistician, and although ''The Economist'' were relatively enlightened employers, this did not extend to equal pay in her earlier years; according to the editor Geoffrey Crowther, "You can hire a first-rate woman for the price of a second-rate man". Deane retired from ''The Economist'' aged 75, but continued working on a consultancy basis for various employers, and published a book aged 80 with the journalist Robert Pringle, entitled, ''The Central Banks''.

, the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, has called Deane "a pathbreaker for female financial journalists".

Honours

In 2006, Deane was awarded an MBE, and said to the Queen: "I gather you don't much like us journalists, Ma’am", to which the Queen replied that ''financial'' journalists were all right.

Personal life

She died on 2 October 2008, at the age of 94.

Legacy

In 1998, she put £1 million towards establishing up a foundation to encourage young financial journalists, and most of her estate was added to The Marjorie Deane Financial Journalism Foundation.

Selected publications

*''Economic ties in the free world''. Friends of Atlantic Union, 1953. * ''Stagflation, Britain's way out''. The Economist Newspaper Ltd, 1971. ISBN 0850580110. * ''The Central Banks'' (with Robert Pringle). Hamish Hamilton, 1994. ISBN 0241133262

References

External links

The Marjorie Deane Financial Journalism Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deane, Marjorie 1914 births 2008 deaths British writers British women journalists People educated at Withington Girls' School Members_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire