Norman Shrapnel
Encyclopedia
Norman Shrapnel was an English
journalist
, author
, and parliamentary correspondent
.
Shrapnel was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, and was educated at The King's School, Grantham
. In 1947, after war service in the RAF, he joined the Manchester Guardian as reporter, book reviewer, and theatre critic. He became the paper’s (and the later Guardian’s) parliamentary correspondent in 1958, succeeding Harry Boardman, a post he held until 1975. In 1969 he won the first Political Writer of the Year award.
He wrote books on history
and politics
(The Performers: Politics as Theatre 1978, and The Seventies), and on topography (A View of the Thames 1977, and his Shrapnel's British Isles series, documenting places such as the Isle of Ely
and the Isle of Axholme
). For The Bluffer’s Guides, he wrote Bluff Your Way in Politics. Shrapnel broadcast on the BBC World Service
, presenting British social and political life.
He married Mary Lillian Myfanwy Edwards in 1940, and had two sons, one of whom is the stage actor John Shrapnel
. He died at Far Oakridge, Gloucestershire
, in 2004.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, and parliamentary correspondent
Correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is a journalist or commentator, or more general speaking, an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, location. A foreign correspondent is stationed in a foreign...
.
Shrapnel was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, and was educated at The King's School, Grantham
The King's School, Grantham
The King's School is a British grammar school located in the market town of Grantham, in Lincolnshire, England, and one of the oldest schools in the UK.-History:...
. In 1947, after war service in the RAF, he joined the Manchester Guardian as reporter, book reviewer, and theatre critic. He became the paper’s (and the later Guardian’s) parliamentary correspondent in 1958, succeeding Harry Boardman, a post he held until 1975. In 1969 he won the first Political Writer of the Year award.
He wrote books on history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
(The Performers: Politics as Theatre 1978, and The Seventies), and on topography (A View of the Thames 1977, and his Shrapnel's British Isles series, documenting places such as the Isle of Ely
Isle of Ely
The Isle of Ely is a historic region around the city of Ely now in Cambridgeshire, England but previously a county in its own right.-Etymology:...
and the Isle of Axholme
Isle of Axholme
The Isle of Axholme is part of North Lincolnshire, England. It is the only part of Lincolnshire west of the River Trent. It is between the three towns of Doncaster, Scunthorpe and Gainsborough.- Description:...
). For The Bluffer’s Guides, he wrote Bluff Your Way in Politics. Shrapnel broadcast on the BBC World Service
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster, broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays...
, presenting British social and political life.
He married Mary Lillian Myfanwy Edwards in 1940, and had two sons, one of whom is the stage actor John Shrapnel
John Shrapnel
John Shrapnel is an English actor.Shrapnel was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, the son of Mary Lillian Myfanwy and journalist/author Norman Shrapnel....
. He died at Far Oakridge, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, in 2004.