PAUL JOHNSON

Paul Bede Johnson (born 2 November 1928) is an English journalist, historian, speechwriter and author. He was educated at the Jesuit independent school Stonyhurst College, and at Magdalen College, Oxford. Johnson first came to prominence in the 1950s as a journalist writing for, and later editing, the New Statesman magazine.
A prolific writer, he has written over 40 books and contributed to numerous magazines and newspapers. While associated with the left in his early career, he is now a conservative popular historian. His sons are the journalist Daniel Johnson, founder of Standpoint, and the businessman Luke Johnson, former chairman of Channel 4.

 

Anthologies, polemics & contemporary history

• Johnson, Paul Bede; Abel-Smith, Brian; Calder, Nigel; Hoggart, Richard; Jones, Mervyn; Marris, Peter; Murdoch, Iris; Shore, Peter; Thomas, Hugh; Townsend, Peter; Williams, Raymond (1957), "A Sense of Outrage", in Mackenzie, Norman Ian, Conviction, London, ENG, UK: MacGibbon & Kee, pp. 202–17.
• Johnson, Paul Bede (1957), The Suez War, London, ENG, UK: MacGibbon & Kee.
• ——— (1958), Journey Into Chaos, Western Policy in the Middle East, London, ENG, UK: MacGibbon & Kee.
• ——— (1971), Statesmen and Nations, Sidgwick & Jackson. An anthology of New Statesman articles from the 1950s and 1960s. Often surprisingly mild in tone given Johnson's later development.
• ——— (1977), Enemies of Society, Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
• ——— (1980), The Recovery of Freedom, Mainstream, Basil Blackwell.
• ——— (1981), Davis, William, ed., The Best of Everything – Animals, Business, Drink, Travel, Food, Literature, Medicine, Playtime, Politics, Theatre, Young World, Art, Communications, Law and Crime, Films, Pop Culture, Sport, Women's Fashion, Men's Fashion, Music, Military – contributor.
• ——— (1985), The Pick of Paul Johnson, Harrap.
• ——— (1991) [1986], The Oxford Book of Political Anecdotes (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press.
• ——— (1988), Intellectuals, Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
• 1994 The Quotable Paul Johnson A Topical Compilation of His Wit, Wisdom and Satire (George J. Marlin, Richard P. Rabatin, Heather Higgins (Editors)) 1994 Noonday Press/1996 Atlantic Books(US)
• 1994 Wake Up Britain – a Latter-day Pamphlet Weidenfeld & Nicolson
• 1996 To Hell with Picasso & Other Essays: Selected Pieces from “The Spectator” Weidenfeld & Nicolson
• 2009 Churchill (biography), 192 pp.^[30]
• 2012 Darwin: Portrait of a genius (Viking, 176 pages)