Peter John Preston (23 May 1938 – 6 January 2018) was a British journalist and author. He was editor of The Guardian for twenty years, from 1975 to 1995.
Peter Preston | |
---|---|
Born | Peter John Preston 23 May 1938 Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, England |
Died | 6 January 2018 | (aged 79)
Education | Loughborough Grammar School |
Alma mater | St John's College, Oxford |
Occupation(s) | Journalist, author, and editor |
Title | Editor, The Guardian |
Term | 1975–1995 |
Predecessor | Alastair Hetherington |
Successor | Alan Rusbridger |
Spouse | Jean Burrell |
Children | 4, including Ben Preston |
Relatives | Janice Turner (daughter-in-law) |
Peter Preston was born in Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, the son of John Preston, a greengrocery business manager, and his wife, Kathlyn Preston (née Chell).[1] He grew up in the village of Quorn, two miles south of Loughborough.[1]
His father died from polio when Preston was a child, and he subsequently caught the disease; he spent 18 months in and out of hospital, including time in an iron lung. The disease caused permanent damage to his body.[2] He was educated at Loughborough Grammar School and St John's College, Oxford, where he edited the student paper Cherwell.[3]
Preston started his career at the Liverpool Daily Post in 1959, and joined The Guardian (then the Manchester Guardian) in 1963.[4] He rose to become editor in 1975 and remained so for more than twenty years, retiring in 1995.[1] He reported on Conservative MPs, including the perjurious Jonathan Aitken and the cash-for-questions affair involving Neil Hamilton and Tim Smith.[3] In both instances, a source was Harrod's and Paris Ritz owner Mohammed Al-Fayed. Preston was also editor when The Guardian was forced to hand over leaked government documents, which were then traced to a Foreign Office copier, leading to Sarah Tisdall, who was subsequently imprisoned under the Official Secrets Act 1911.[3]
He continued as a columnist for the rest of his life. He contributed a weekly column to The Observer, "Peter Preston on press and broadcasting", devoted mainly to news about newspapers, their readers and (generally) diminishing circulations in the newspaper's "business and media" section.[5] He was one of the founders of the European Press Prize and acted as chairman of its preparatory committee from 2013 until 2017.[6] He had strong opinions on Brexit and the balance of the BBC and continued to take to social media to discuss this after his retirement.[7] He was a member of the Scott Trust (owner of The Guardian and Observer) from 1979 to 2003, chairman of the International Press Institute from 1995 to 1997,[4] and chairman of the Association of British Press Editors.[8][9] Preston wrote two novels, Bess (1999) and 51st State (1998).[3][10]
In 1962, Preston married Jean Burrell, and they had four children.[1] His son, Ben Preston, is a former deputy editor of The Times[11] and Radio Times, and is executive editor of The Sunday Times.
Preston received honorary degrees from the City University, London, and the universities of Leicester, Loughborough, Essex and Roehampton.[12]
Preston died on 6 January 2018 after suffering from melanoma.[13][14]