David English | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1931-05-26)26 May 1931 Oxford, England |
| Died | 10 June 1998(1998-06-10) (aged 67) London, England |
| Education | Bournemouth School |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
Sir David English (26 May 1931 – 10 June 1998) was a British journalist andnewspaper editor, best known for his two-decade editorship of theDaily Mail.[1][2]
English was born inOxford, and educated atBournemouth School.[3][2] His father having died in 1930, young David developed a close relationship with his grandfather, Alf, who instilled in him a love of newspapers. David's mother, Kitty, was Assistant to the Post Master General in Bournemouth who was keen to see her son attend university, and upon learning that he would rather work in journalism, emphasised the negative aspects of that profession, in an attempt to dissuade him. However, aged 16 and encouraged by Alf, he joined the localChristchurch Times and then had a brief period with theNews inPortsmouth, moving to London before he was 20.[4]
English began his national newspaper career at theDaily Mirror in 1951. He made little impact there, and left in 1953 due to his poor relationship with news editor Ken Hord.[3][5] At one point he worked at the left-wingReynold's News and Sunday Citizen and, out of a burning desire to generate a front-page headline, garnered significant attention for attempted mail theft.[3][6] He married Irene Mainwood in 1954, with whom he had two daughters and a son - Nikki, Amanda and Neil.[3][7] He moved to theDaily Sketch in 1956, firstly as features editor and then editor, before moving to New York and theSunday Dispatch, a sister paper to theSketch, in 1959. He worked there briefly before finding a job at theDaily Express.[8]
English took up the editorship of theDaily Mail in 1971, and was widely credited for turning the paper around following its decades-long stagnation.[3][7] 1982 saw him help revive theMail on Sunday following a rough launch.[9] He continued as editor of theMail until 1992, being followed by formerEvening Standard editorPaul Dacre. This was to prevent Dacre from joiningThe Times following an offer fromRupert Murdoch.[10] English became chairman and editor-in-chief ofAssociated Newspapers, parent company of both theMail and theStandard.[3][7] At the end of his career, he worked for the Press Complaints Commission, the Commonwealth Press Union and the National Council for the Training of Journalists.[11] He also took up chairmanships of Teletext UK, Channel One TV and ITN.[11] After the death of Princess Diana he had the English press agree to a new code of practice on privacy.[7][12]
He suffered a severe stroke and was sent toSt Thomas's Hospital, London on 9 June 1998, dying there the following day. He was due to be appointed alife peer.[7]
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Editor of theDaily Sketch 1969–1971 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Editor of theDaily Mail 1971–1992 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Editor of theMail on Sunday 1982 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
