John Timpson
Encyclopedia
Kenton
-Notable people:* Actress Michele Austin, best known as PC Yvonne Hemmingway in ITV's The Bill, attended Claremont High School in Kenton* Cricketer Denis Compton lived in Kenton* TV exercise instructor Mr Motivator lived in Kenton...
, Harrow
London Borough of Harrow
The London Borough of Harrow is a London borough of north-west London. It borders Hertfordshire to the north and other London boroughs: Hillingdon to the west, Ealing to the south, Brent to the south-east and Barnet to the east.-History:...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School
Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood
Merchant Taylors' School is a British independent day school for boys, originally located in the City of London. Since 1933 it has been located at Sandy Lodge in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire ....
, a boys' independent school
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
in Northwood, London.
On leaving school he went straight to the Wembley News as a sixteen-year-old cub reporter. After five years there and two years of national service, he married his wife Pat and moved to Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. He then worked for the Eastern Daily Press
Eastern Daily Press
The Eastern Daily Press, commonly referred to as the EDP, is a regional newspaper covering Norfolk, and northern parts of Suffolk and eastern Cambridgeshire, and is published daily in Norwich, UK....
until, in 1959, he started work at the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
.
From 1964, he presented Newsroom
Newsroom (BBC programme)
Newsroom was the BBC2 channel's main news programme during the 1960s and early 1970s.The programme began on the day BBC2 started transmission, 20 April 1964 and continued until 1973. The programme was initially broadcast late at night but was moved to a 7.30 - 8.00pm time-slot in 1968...
on BBC 2
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
, the first British television news programme to make the switch to colour on 1 July 1967. He later presented BBC's Tonight programme.
Timpson co-presented (with Brian Redhead
Brian Redhead
Brian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
and others) the BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
programme Today
Today programme
Today is BBC Radio 4's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks...
from 1970 to 1976 and again from 1978 to 1986, working on television during the gap. From 1983 to 1987, he also presented the popular weekly radio show, Any Questions?
Any Questions?
Any Questions? is a topical debate radio programme in the United Kingdom.-Format:It is broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on Friday evenings and repeated on Saturday afternoons, when it is followed by a phone-in response programme, Any Answers?, previously a postal response slot...
. He was generally perceived as something of a small-c conservative traditionalist and probably politically to the right of his colleague Brian Redhead
Brian Redhead
Brian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
. In 1986 he was awarded a Sony Gold Award for outstanding services to radio.
His experiences in broadcasting provided Timpson with material for several books: "Today and Yesterday" (1976), "The Lighter Side of Today" (1983) and "The Early Morning Book" (1986). After his retirement from the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
he returned to Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
and continued writing, especially about England and East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
in particular. These included a novel "Paper Trail" published in 1989 and two works on the quirks and oddities of English life - "Timpson's England" (1987) and "Timpson's Towns" (1989). Subsequent books included "Timpson’s English Villages" (1992), "Timpson’s Other England (1993)", "Timpson’s English Country Inns" (1995) and "Timpson on the Verge" (2002).
In 1987 he was awarded an OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
for his services to broadcasting.
The station building at County School
County School railway station
County School is a railway station approximately one mile north of the village of North Elmham in the English county of Norfolk. The station is part of a line being gradually restored by the Mid-Norfolk Railway from East Dereham to Fakenham.-History:...
was formally opened as a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
centre by John Timpson on 15 June 1990, who was brought into the station for the occasion on a short train composed of a Ruston diesel locomotive and LMS brake van.
John Timpson died on 19 November 2005 and was buried at his parish church of St Peter’s Weasenham, near King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
in Norfolk. He was survived by his wife and son, although his second son Nick had predeceased him by only five weeks.
A memorial service was held on 22 February 2006, when family, friends and co-workers gathered at Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral is a cathedral located in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Formerly a Catholic church, it has belonged to the Church of England since the English Reformation....
to celebrate his long and productive life and career. The speakers included Director of BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Radio and Music, Jenny Abramsky
Jenny Abramsky
Dame Jennifer Gita Abramsky, DBE is chairman of the UK's National Heritage Memorial Fund . The NHMF makes grants to preserve heritage of outstanding national importance. Until her retirement from the BBC Jenny Abramsky was its most senior woman employee; she was Director of Audio and Music...
.