Carl Chinn | |
|---|---|
 Chinn in 2011 | |
| Born | (1956-09-06)6 September 1956 (age 69) Moseley, Birmingham, England |
| Occupations |
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| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 |
| Website | Carl Chinn’s Brum[1] |
Carl Steven Alfred ChinnMBE DL (born 6 September 1956) is an English historian, author and radio presenter whose working life has been devoted to the study and popularisation of the city ofBirmingham. He broadcast a programme on theBBC from the mid-1990s focusing on Birmingham's history.
In 1990, he was contracted to lecture[2] at theUniversity of Birmingham, where he subsequently became a full professor in 2002. During this year he was appointed a Member of theOrder of the British Empire (MBE) for his "services to local history and to charities".[3][4]
Chinn was born at Sorrento Hospital inMoseley, Birmingham.[5] His father, Alfred (died 26 April 2010), was known as "Buck"[6] and was a notable football supporter and local activist[6] fromSparkbrook.[5] His mother, Sylvia, was known as "Sylvie"[6] and was fromAston.[5] Chinn grew up inBirmingham and was educated atMoseley School and theUniversity of Birmingham.
Chinn initially followed his father and grandfather intobookmaking before entering academia, gaining his PhD in 1986.[7]
His work in the community made him a popular figure, and in 1994 he was invited by theBirmingham Evening Mail to write a two-page feature on local history. This proved extremely popular and Chinn wrote a weekly column for the paper until 2016.[7]
Chinn held the position of Professor of Community History at theUniversity of Birmingham until 2015 and is now Emeritus Professor.[5] He was also Director of theBirmingham Lives multimedia archive at UoB (formerly atSouth Birmingham College).[7] He is the author of over thirty books on the history of Birmingham and the urban working class in England. He often appears on local television programmes such asMidlands Today; and wrote a weekly local history column for theExpress & Star.[7] He presented a weekly radio programme onBBC Radio WM from 1994 until it was axed in 2013. He has made three videos and provided spoken links on two CDs of songs about Birmingham.[7]
In 2000 Chinn was a leading figure in the temporarily successful, but eventually doomed, campaign to save theLongbridge car factory from closure. In the2001 Birthday Honours, he was appointedMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) "for services to the community, especially Local History, in the West Midlands."[5][8] When the rebuiltBull Ring was opened in 2003 Chinn criticised it for the lack of concern its developers and planners had shown towards market traders who had been the mainstay of the Bull Ring for the 800 years up to 1964, when the much-criticised previous shopping centre was built on the site.[9] Chinn has also been prominent in the campaigns to savethe last back-to-back houses in Birmingham, now aNational Trust museum in Inge Street; and for a memorial to the victims of the Second World War Blitz on the city, sited in Edgbaston Street in the Bull Ring. In October 2007 he became patron of the St John's Church Preservation Group, which is[needs update] campaigning for the reopening ofSt John's Church, Dudley.[10]
In December 2010 he appeared onIan Hislop's BBC television showAge of the Do-Gooders, in which he championedGeorge Dawson; a "non-conformist preacher, and a bit of a showman". He has also appeared on the BBC'sQuestion Time. In 2020 appeared in 'Britains' Biggest Dig' in BBC 4 television mini series exploring HS2 archaeology dig in Birmingham.
In the 1980s he was briefly a member of theSocial Democratic Party,[citation needed] which broke fromLabour in protest at its perceivedleftward shift, and later went on to merge with theLiberal Party to form theLiberal Democrats. He stood in the1983 general election inBirmingham Sparkbrook as an independent, campaigning for import controls to protect local industry, and more investment in council housing. He came last with 281 votes (0.9%).[11]
Chinn married Kathleen Doyle in 1978; they have a son and three daughters, one of whom, Tara, has sung professionally on stage with her father.[12]
Chinn is a supporter ofAston Villa FC[12] and has a season ticket atVilla Park.
Chinn is a descendant ofPeaky Blindersgangster Edward Derrick.[13] In 2023, he was appointed adeputy lieutenant of theWest Midlands.[14]
