Basil Boothroyd
Encyclopedia
John Basil Boothroyd was an English humorous writer, best known for his long association with Punch
. As a young man he worked for a bank, but began contributing articles to Punch, and became its assistant editor, a post in which he served for eighteen years. His career as a writer for Punch spanned the editorships of E. V. Knox
to Alan Coren
. Boothroyd’s chief literary work outside the comic essay was an official biography of Prince Philip
undertaken at the request of its subject. Boothroyd also wrote for television and radio, and was a frequent broadcaster.
, England, son of James and Sarah Jackson Boothroyd (née Binch). He later said of his birthplace,"You can either call it the middle of the Nottinghamshire
coalfield or the beautiful Sherwood Forest
according to what sort of article you are writing." James Boothroyd was a man of diverse trades, whom Boothroyd later remembered accompanying on clock-winding visits to great houses. Boothroyd was educated at Lincoln Cathedral
Choir School and Lincoln School
. In 1927 he became a bank clerk (it was later a source of pleasure to him that P G Wodehouse
had started his working career similarly) and in his spare time he played the saxophone in a band called 'The Synco Peppers' and was a part-time repertory actor for the St Pancras People's Theatre.
While still working as a bank clerk he started writing for Punch in 1938, and during World War II
he continued to contribute, using his experiences in the RAF
as source material. At first he was an instructor in the RAF Police and was later commissioned, becoming personal assistant to the Provost Marshal. He was demobilised in 1946 with the rank of flight lieutenant. His books about service life included Home Guard Goings-On, Adastral Bodies, Are Sergeants Human? and Are Officers Necessary?
Back in civilian life, he resumed his double-harness career with the bank and Punch, but in 1952 he was appointed full-time assistant editor of the magazine. Malcolm Muggeridge
who became editor in 1953 insisted on a less cosy style of writing ("No more articles about Celia and the washing-up"), and Boothroyd, according to The Times
"chafed at … having to mount an attack on people whose only offence was to have been in the headlines that week, and much preferred chronicling the waywardness of common things or the vagaries of commuting."
In 1970 Boothroyd, was invited to write an official biography of the Duke of Edinburgh
. It was the duke who suggested Boothroyd for the job, on the strength of a recent Punch profile. The Times said of the biography Philip, published in 1971, that it was "lightly and elegantly written, the quality of the research being in no way concealed by the occasionally frivolous detail."
Boothroyd had a long connection with the BBC
writing radio comedy, including a series for Ian Carmichael
, The Small, Intricate Life of Gerald C Potter, which ran from 1975 to 1981, and was still receiving repeat broadcasts in 2009. He also wrote for television, including adaptations of George
and Weedon Grossmith
's Diary of a Nobody
in 1979 and H F Ellis
's A J Wentworth, BA
, in 1982. He was a frequent after-dinner speaker, and in 1973-74 was speechwriter to Sir Hugh Wontner
, Lord Mayor of London
. In 1987 he published his autobiography, A Shoulder To Laugh On.
Boothroyd married Phyllis Barbara Youngman in June 1939. She died in 1980 and he married June Elizabeth Leonhardt Mortimer in 1981. There was one son of the first marriage.
said of Boothroyd:
P. G. Wodehouse
said of Boothroyd, "There are very few humorists you can rely on to be funny every time. In fact I can think of only one. He is a writer of whom I never miss a word."
Punch (magazine)
Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 50s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration...
. As a young man he worked for a bank, but began contributing articles to Punch, and became its assistant editor, a post in which he served for eighteen years. His career as a writer for Punch spanned the editorships of E. V. Knox
E. V. Knox
Edmund George Valpy Knox , was a poet and satirist who wrote under the pseudonym Evoe. He was editor of Punch 1932-1949, having been a regular contributor in verse and prose for many years....
to Alan Coren
Alan Coren
Alan Coren was an English humorist, writer and satirist who was well known as a regular panellist on the BBC radio quiz The News Quiz and a team captain on BBC television's Call My Bluff...
. Boothroyd’s chief literary work outside the comic essay was an official biography of Prince Philip
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
undertaken at the request of its subject. Boothroyd also wrote for television and radio, and was a frequent broadcaster.
Biography
Boothroyd was born in WorksopWorksop
Worksop is the largest town in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England on the River Ryton at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest. It is about east-south-east of the City of Sheffield and its population is estimated to be 39,800...
, England, son of James and Sarah Jackson Boothroyd (née Binch). He later said of his birthplace,"You can either call it the middle of the Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
coalfield or the beautiful Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Forest
Sherwood Forest is a Royal Forest in Nottinghamshire, England, that is famous through its historical association with the legend of Robin Hood. Continuously forested since the end of the Ice Age, Sherwood Forest National Nature Reserve today encompasses 423 hectares surrounding the village of...
according to what sort of article you are writing." James Boothroyd was a man of diverse trades, whom Boothroyd later remembered accompanying on clock-winding visits to great houses. Boothroyd was educated at Lincoln Cathedral
Lincoln Cathedral
Lincoln Cathedral is a historic Anglican cathedral in Lincoln in England and seat of the Bishop of Lincoln in the Church of England. It was reputedly the tallest building in the world for 249 years . The central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt...
Choir School and Lincoln School
Lincoln Christ's Hospital School
Lincoln Christ's Hospital School is a state comprehensive school for 11-18 year olds located on Wragby Road in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England.-Admissions:Its student population is just under 1400, including over 300 in the sixth form...
. In 1927 he became a bank clerk (it was later a source of pleasure to him that P G Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
had started his working career similarly) and in his spare time he played the saxophone in a band called 'The Synco Peppers' and was a part-time repertory actor for the St Pancras People's Theatre.
While still working as a bank clerk he started writing for Punch in 1938, and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he continued to contribute, using his experiences in the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
as source material. At first he was an instructor in the RAF Police and was later commissioned, becoming personal assistant to the Provost Marshal. He was demobilised in 1946 with the rank of flight lieutenant. His books about service life included Home Guard Goings-On, Adastral Bodies, Are Sergeants Human? and Are Officers Necessary?
Back in civilian life, he resumed his double-harness career with the bank and Punch, but in 1952 he was appointed full-time assistant editor of the magazine. Malcolm Muggeridge
Malcolm Muggeridge
Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge was an English journalist, author, media personality, and satirist. During World War II, he was a soldier and a spy...
who became editor in 1953 insisted on a less cosy style of writing ("No more articles about Celia and the washing-up"), and Boothroyd, according to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
"chafed at … having to mount an attack on people whose only offence was to have been in the headlines that week, and much preferred chronicling the waywardness of common things or the vagaries of commuting."
In 1970 Boothroyd, was invited to write an official biography of the Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch....
. It was the duke who suggested Boothroyd for the job, on the strength of a recent Punch profile. The Times said of the biography Philip, published in 1971, that it was "lightly and elegantly written, the quality of the research being in no way concealed by the occasionally frivolous detail."
Boothroyd had a long connection with 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...
writing radio comedy, including a series for Ian Carmichael
Ian Carmichael
Ian Gillett Carmichael, OBE was an English film, stage, television and radio actor.-Early life:Carmichael was born in Hull, in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The son of an optician, he was educated at Scarborough College and Bromsgrove School, before training as an actor at RADA...
, The Small, Intricate Life of Gerald C Potter, which ran from 1975 to 1981, and was still receiving repeat broadcasts in 2009. He also wrote for television, including adaptations of George
George Grossmith
George Grossmith was an English comedian, writer, composer, actor, and singer. His performing career spanned more than four decades...
and Weedon Grossmith
Weedon Grossmith
Walter Weedon Grossmith , better known as Weedon Grossmith, was an English writer, painter, actor and playwright, best known as co-author of The Diary of a Nobody with his famous brother, music hall comedian and Gilbert and Sullivan star, George Grossmith...
's Diary of a Nobody
Diary of a Nobody
The Diary of a Nobody, an English comic novel written by George Grossmith and his brother Weedon Grossmith with illustrations by Weedon, first appeared in the magazine Punch in 1888 – 89, and was first printed in book form in 1892...
in 1979 and H F Ellis
H. F. Ellis
Humphry Francis Ellis MBE was an English comic writer, best known for his creation of A.J. Wentworth, the ineffectual schoolmaster whose fictional diaries were first published in Punch magazine.-Life:...
's A J Wentworth, BA
A J Wentworth, BA
A J Wentworth, BA is a British sitcom that aired on ITV in 1982. Set in the 1940s, the programme was shown posthumously following the death of its lead actor Arthur Lowe, who died on 15 April 1982. Based on the writings of H. F. Ellis, A J Wentworth, BA was written by Basil Boothroyd...
, in 1982. He was a frequent after-dinner speaker, and in 1973-74 was speechwriter to Sir Hugh Wontner
Hugh Wontner
Sir Hugh Walter Kingwell Wontner GBE, CVO, was an English hotelier and politician. He was managing director of the Savoy hotel group from 1941 to 1979 and its chairman from 1948 to 1984, continuing as president until his death. He was also chairman of the Savoy Theatre from 1948 until his death...
, Lord Mayor of London
Lord Mayor of London
The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the legal title for the Mayor of the City of London Corporation. The Lord Mayor of London is to be distinguished from the Mayor of London; the former is an officer only of the City of London, while the Mayor of London is the Mayor of Greater London and...
. In 1987 he published his autobiography, A Shoulder To Laugh On.
Boothroyd married Phyllis Barbara Youngman in June 1939. She died in 1980 and he married June Elizabeth Leonhardt Mortimer in 1981. There was one son of the first marriage.
Reputation
In an obituary tribute, Alan CorenAlan Coren
Alan Coren was an English humorist, writer and satirist who was well known as a regular panellist on the BBC radio quiz The News Quiz and a team captain on BBC television's Call My Bluff...
said of Boothroyd:
He was probably the most professional writer I have ever known; and consequently both the most self-punishing and the least self-satisfied. Few have worked harder to make a sentence right, or to conceal the effort that had made it so, few have truffled longer or deeper in our bottomless vocabulary for the one word which would corral the elusive thought, and very few indeed have sat like him, staring at a typed semi-colon for half an hour and deliberating whether or not a full colon might produce a more effective pause. Then coming back two hours later and making it a comma … It prevented him from writing novels – "I might spend the rest of my life re-polishing the first thousand worlds".
P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
said of Boothroyd, "There are very few humorists you can rely on to be funny every time. In fact I can think of only one. He is a writer of whom I never miss a word."
Books
Boothroyd published eighteen books between 1941 and 1987, mostly collections of his Punch articles, together with his biography of Prince Philip and his autobiography.- Adastral Bodies 1942
- To My Embarrassment, 1961
- The Whole Thing's Laughable, 1964
- You Can't Be Serious, 1967
- Stay Married Abroad, 1968
- Boothroyd at Bay: Some Radio Talks, 1970