Peter Parker (born 2 June 1954) is a British biographer, historian, journalist and editor. He was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by King George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 800 Fellows, elect ...

in 1997.

Life and career

Education

Parker was born to Edward Parker and Patricia Sturridge on 2 June 1954 in

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

in the West Midlands of England. He attended the Downs Malvern in

Colwall Colwall is a Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Herefordshire, England, situated on the border with Worcestershire, nestling on the western side of the Malvern Hills at the heart of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, AONB. Areas of ...

and

Canford School Canford School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18). Situated in 300 acres of parkland near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, south west England, it is one of the largest ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

, and read

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. He began a career in

literary journalism Creative nonfiction (also known as literary nonfiction, narrative nonfiction, literary journalism or verfabula) is a genre of writing that uses literary styles and techniques to create factually accurate narratives. Creative nonfiction contrasts ...

while working in the Design Centre's bookshop in the 1980s, contributing regular book reviews to ''

Gay News ''Gay News'' was a fortnightly newspaper in the United Kingdom founded in June 1972 in a collaboration between former members of the Gay Liberation Front and members of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality (CHE). At the newspaper's height, circu ...

'' and ''

The London Magazine ''The London Magazine'' is the title of six different publications that have appeared in succession since 1732. All six have focused on the arts, literature and poetry. A number of Nobel Laureates, including Annie Ernaux, Albert Camus, Doris Les ...

''. He published a number of short stories in ''

'', ''

Fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

'', ''

Critical Quarterly ''Critical Quarterly'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal in the humanities published by Wiley. The editor-in-chief is Colin MacCabe. The journal notably published the Black Papers on education starting in 1969. History Early years ''Critical Q ...

'' and three PEN/Arts Council anthologies.

Books

Parker subsequently turned to writing non-fiction, and his first book, ''The Old Lie: The Great War and the Public-School Ethos'' was published by

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...

in 1987. A paperback edition, with a new introduction, was published by

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

in 2007. Parker's second book ''Ackerley: The Life of J. R. Ackerley'' was also published by Constable in the UK in 1989 and by

Farrar, Straus and Giroux Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer P ...

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. He edited (and wrote much of) two literary encyclopaedias: ''A Reader's Guide to the Twentieth-Century Novel'' published in the UK by Fourth Estate and Helicon in 1994 and in America by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

in 1995, and ''A Reader's Guide to Twentieth-Century Writers'' published in the UK by Fourth Estate and Helicon in 1995 and in America by

in 1996. Parker then wrote the "definitive" biography of

Christopher Isherwood Christopher William Bradshaw Isherwood (26 August 1904 – 4 January 1986) was an Anglo-American novelist, playwright, screenwriter, autobiographer, and diarist. His best-known works include '' Goodbye to Berlin'' (1939), a semi-autobiographical ...

. The book was published in 2004, on the

centenary A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

of Isherwood's birth, by Pan Macmillan in the UK under the title ''Isherwood'' and by

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

in America under the title ''Isherwood: A Life Revealed''. David Thomson, in ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...

'' described it as, "Immense and magnificent … ''A Life Revealed'' is a modest subtitle for such a daunting process of reconstruction and re-appraisal." ''The Last Veteran: Harry Patch and the Legacy of War'' was published by Fourth Estate on

Armistice Day Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark Armistice of 11 November 1918, the armistice signed between th ...

in 2009.

Simon Heffer Simon James Heffer (born 18 July 1960) is an English historian, journalist, author and political commentator. He has published several biographies and a series of books on the social history of Great Britain from the mid-nineteenth century unti ...

in ''The Daily Telegraph'' wrote, "A fine work of research and of history. Parker tells the story of how the War came to an end and how the aftermath was coped with." Parker's ''Housman Country: Into the Heart of England'', is cultural history of ''

A Shropshire Lad ''A Shropshire Lad'' is a collection of 63 poems by the English poet Alfred Edward Housman, published in 1896. Selling slowly at first, it then rapidly grew in popularity, particularly among young readers. Composers began setting the poems to ...

'', was published by

Little, Brown Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries, it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emil ...

in 2016. It was among the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'', ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...

''s, the ''

Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free newspaper, free of charge in London, Engl ...

''s and ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' Best Books of 2016. The book was published in the US in 2017 by

and was a ''

The New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...

'' Editor's Choice and nominated for the 2017

PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award The PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award is awarded by the PEN America (formerly PEN American Center) to honor a "distinguished biography possessing notable literary merit which has been published in the United States during the previous calendar year." ...

for Biography. Parker wrote a discursive account of the history and origins of plant names in his book ''A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners'' published by

in 2018. Parker has edited ''Some Men in London: Queer Life, 1945–1969','' a major anthology which uncovers the rich reality of life for queer men in London. The book, published by

Penguin Classics Penguin Classics is an imprint (trade name), imprint of Penguin Books under which classic works of literature are published in English language, English, Spanish language, Spanish, Portuguese language, Portuguese, and Korean language, Korean amon ...

, is divided in two volumes, 1945–1959 and 1960–1967 respectively.

Matthew Parris Matthew Francis Parris (born 7 August 1949) is a British political writer, broadcaster, and former politician. He served as Member of Parliament for West Derbyshire from 1979 to 1986. Ideologically a liberal conservative, he is a member of t ...

, writing for the ''Spectator,'' described it as 'quite simply, a work of genius.' The anthology was The Times and The Sunday Times History Book of the Year 2024. Parker in London 2019

Journalism

Parker was an associate editor of the ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'' (2004) and remains an advisory editor for the regular updates to the project. Among the books to which Parker has contributed are Scribner's ''British Writers'' (on

L. P. Hartley Leslie Poles Hartley (30 December 1895 – 13 December 1972) was an English novelist and short story writer. Although his first fiction was published in 1924, his best-known works are the '' Eustace and Hilda'' trilogy (1944–1947) and '' Th ...

, 2002), the seventh edition of ''The Oxford Companion to English Literature'' (2009), ''Fifty Gay and Lesbian Books Everybody Must Read'' (2009) and ''Britten's Century'', published in 2013 to mark the centenary of the composer

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

. His edition of G. F. Green's 1952 novel ''In the Making'' was published as a Penguin Modern Classic in 2012, and in 2016 he wrote an introduction to the ''

Slightly Foxed ''Slightly Foxed'' is a British quarterly literary magazine. Its primary focus is books and book culture. It was established by former John Murray editors Hazel Wood and Gail Pirkis. Notable authors to have written for the magazine include Pene ...

'' edition of Diana Petre's 1975 memoir ''The Secret Orchard of Roger Ackerley''. A full-length animated feature film of J. R. Ackerley's book ''

My Dog Tulip ''My Dog Tulip'' is a 2009 American animated drama film based on the 1956 memoir of the same name by J. R. Ackerley, BBC editor, novelist and memoirist. The film tells the story of Ackerley's fifteen-year relationship with his Alsatian dog (Germ ...

'', for which he collaborated on the script and acted as advisor to the producers, was released in 2010. Parker was a member of the executive committee of

English PEN Founded in 1921, English PEN is one of the world's first non-governmental organisations and among the first international bodies advocating for human rights. English PEN was the founding centre of PEN International, a worldwide writers' associa ...

from 1993 to 1997 and a trustee of the PEN Literary Foundation, acting as chair from 1999 to 2000. He was on the committee of the

London Library The London Library is an Subscription library, independent lending library in London, established in 1841. Membership is open to all, on payment of an annual subscription, with life and corporate memberships also available. As of December 2023 ...

from 1999 to 2002, subsequently becoming a trustee (2004–07); chair of the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Lindley Library The Lindley Library in London is the largest horticultural library in the world. It is within the headquarters of the Royal Horticultural Society. Library The main part of the library is based at 80 Vincent Square, London, within the headquarters ...

Advisory Committee (2009–2013); and vice-chair of the Council of the

(2008–14). From 2014 until 2017 he was a visiting fellow in the School of Arts at the

University of Northampton The University of Northampton is a public university based in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England. It was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of a number of training colleges, and gained full university status as the University of Northampto ...

. Since 1979 Parker has been a frequent contributor of reviews and features to numerous newspapers and magazines, including ''The Listener'', ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', ''

The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...

'', the ''

New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...

'', ''

The Oldie ''The Oldie'' is a British monthly magazine written for older people "as a light-hearted alternative to a press obsessed with youth and celebrity", according to its website. The magazine was launched in 1992 by Richard Ingrams, who was its edit ...

'', ''

'', ''Apollo'' and the gardening quarterly ''

Hortus ''Hortus'' is a quarterly journal covering gardens and horticulture, privately published in the United Kingdom. The journal was founded in 1987 by David Wheeler. See also *List of horticultural magazines This is a list of notable magazines dev ...

''. He was on the editorial board of the ''London Library Magazine'' (2008–2019) while he continues to serve on the editorial board of

RIBA ''Riba'' (, or , ) is an Arabic word used in Islamic law and roughly translated as " usury": unjust, exploitative gains made in trade or business. ''Riba'' is mentioned and condemned in several different verses in the Qur'an3:130

's ''A Magazine''. Since 1990 he has been one of the judges of the annual

Ackerley Prize The TLS Ackerley Prize is awarded annually to a literary autobiography of excellence, written by an author of British nationality and published during the preceding year. The winner receives £4,000. The prize was established by Nancy West, née ...

for literary autobiography, becoming chair in 2007, and he was for several years one of the judges of the

Encore Award The £15,000 Encore Award for the best second novel was first awarded in 1990. It is sponsored by Lucy Astor, presented by the Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820 by King Ge ...

for a second novel.

References

External links

*
Bloomsbury

Observer review: Isherwood by Peter Parker

Review: Isherwood by Peter Parker

Christopher and his kind

Isherwood’s fine memorial

Review: Isherwood by Peter Parker

ISHERWOOD by Peter Parker , Kirkus Reviews

I am a cactus

Isherwood by Peter Parker

* ttps://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/27/books/review/a-e-housman-country-biography-peter-parker.html England’s Poet of Melancholy, and Why He Never Went Out of Print
On the Trail of ‘A Shropshire Lad’

The Observer as Hero

I, Me, Mine

* ttps://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/private/harry-patch-the-last-veteran-and-the-unknown-warrior Harry Patch, the Last Veteran and the Unknown Warrior
Housman Country: Into the Heart of England by Peter Parker review – the inverse of roast-beef heartiness
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Peter English biographers 20th-century English historians 21st-century English historians 1954 births Living people Writers from Herefordshire People educated at The Downs School, Herefordshire People educated at Canford School Alumni of University College London Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature