Petronella Wyatt
Encyclopedia
Petronella Wyatt is a British journalist
and author. She is the daughter of the former journalist and Labour
politician, the late Woodrow Wyatt
, and his fourth wife, the Hungarian Veronica (Verushka) Banszky Von Ambroz.
in London before reading History at Worcester College, Oxford
for a week, and then transferring and later graduating from University College, London.
She has been a weekly columnist for the Sunday Telegraph
and The Spectator
, of which she was deputy editor. She currently writes political interviews and main feature articles for the Daily Mail
. Her interviewees have included John Major
, David Blunkett
, and Piers Morgan
. Wyatt is known for her direct and playful interview style. In 1996, when interviewing the proposed Labour Minister for Women Janet Anderson
, Anderson joked that "under Labour, women will become more promiscuous", which Wyatt reported as policy.
Denis Healey
regretted at the close of an interview with Wyatt that there was no time left for "rumpy pumpy
".
Wyatt's television
appearances include Question Time
and Newsnight
.
, North London
.
After she had lived in the United States for the latter half of 2003 with Charles Bruce Berry at his home in Charlottesville, Virginia
, in 2004 British newspapers reported that she had had a four-year affair
with the then-Conservative
MP
Boris Johnson
. The affair, which had been well hinted at in UK newspaper gossip columns, included passionate London taxi cab rides around St John's Wood during which they would ask the cab driver to insert cassette tapes of Wyatt singing Puccini. Although Johnson had promised to leave his wife, after a break-up, they had rekindled their relationship during which Wyatt had become pregnant and then had an abortion
; resulting in her mother discovering the affair and reporting it to the press. Johnson was sacked from his shadow cabinet
post by Michael Howard
, not because of the affair but because he had lied about it.
Wyatt, whose hobby is singing and lyric-writing, loves to sing Cole Porter
; and her party trick, which she performed for Norman Lamont’s birthday, is singing Lili Marlene in the husky tones of Marlene Dietrich
. Wyatt co-wrote a cabaret
act called Kiss and Tell with the pianist and composer Jeremy Limb, poet Lloyd Evans, and opera singer Melinda Hughes. It debuted at London club Volstead in November 2007.
Wyatt writes about her attention to her Wikipedia entry. In May 2007, Private Eye
reported that Wyatt had been instructed by Paul Dacre
, the editor of the Daily Mail, to pen an attack on Wikipedia
over the content of her entry on the site. This was published on 22 April 2007 when Wyatt admitted to writing her initial entry and then threatening to sue over vandalism to the page.
She writes against cycling in London
, as championed by her ex-lover Boris Johnson, now Mayor of London
. Her half-brother, Pericles Wyatt, promotes cycling where he lives.
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...
and author. She is the daughter of the former journalist and Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, the late Woodrow Wyatt
Woodrow Wyatt
Woodrow Lyle Wyatt, Baron Wyatt of Weeford , was a British politician, published author, journalist and broadcaster, close to the Queen Mother, Margaret Thatcher and Rupert Murdoch...
, and his fourth wife, the Hungarian Veronica (Verushka) Banszky Von Ambroz.
Biography
Born in London, Wyatt attended St Paul's Girls' SchoolSt Paul's Girls' School
St Paul's Girls' School is a senior independent school, located in Brook Green, Hammersmith, in West London, England.-History:In 1904 a new day school for girls was established by the trustees of the Dean Colet Foundation , which had run St Paul's School for boys since the sixteenth century...
in London before reading History at Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in the eighteenth century, but its predecessor on the same site had been an institution of learning since the late thirteenth century...
for a week, and then transferring and later graduating from University College, London.
She has been a weekly columnist for the Sunday Telegraph
Sunday Telegraph
The Sunday Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961. It is the sister paper of The Daily Telegraph, but is run separately with a different editorial staff, although there is some cross-usage of stories...
and The Spectator
The Spectator
The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay, who also owns The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
, of which she was deputy editor. She currently writes political interviews and main feature articles for the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
. Her interviewees have included John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
, David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett is a British Labour Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, having represented Sheffield Brightside from 1987 to 2010...
, and Piers Morgan
Piers Morgan
Piers Stefan Pughe-Morgan , known professionally as Piers Morgan, is a British journalist and television presenter. He is editorial director of First News, a national newspaper for children....
. Wyatt is known for her direct and playful interview style. In 1996, when interviewing the proposed Labour Minister for Women Janet Anderson
Janet Anderson
Janet Anderson is an English Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Rossendale and Darwen from 1992 until 2010.-Early life:...
, Anderson joked that "under Labour, women will become more promiscuous", which Wyatt reported as policy.
Denis Healey
Denis Healey
Denis Winston Healey, Baron Healey CH, MBE, PC is a British Labour politician, who served as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979.-Early life:...
regretted at the close of an interview with Wyatt that there was no time left for "rumpy pumpy
Sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which a male's penis enters a female's vagina for the purposes of sexual pleasure or reproduction. The entities may be of opposite sexes, or they may be hermaphroditic, as is the case with snails...
".
Wyatt's television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
appearances include Question Time
Question Time (TV series)
Question Time is a topical debate BBC television programme in the United Kingdom, based on Any Questions?. The show typically features politicians from at least the three major political parties as well as other public figures who answer questions put to them by the audience...
and Newsnight
Newsnight
Newsnight is a BBC Television current affairs programme noted for its in-depth analysis and often robust cross-examination of senior politicians. Jeremy Paxman has been its main presenter for over two decades....
.
Personal life
Wyatt, known to her friends as "Petsy," lives with her mother in St John's WoodSt John's Wood
St John's Wood is a district of north-west London, England, in the City of Westminster, and at the north-west end of Regent's Park. It is approximately 2.5 miles north-west of Charing Cross. Once part of the Great Middlesex Forest, it was later owned by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem...
, North London
North London
North London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...
.
After she had lived in the United States for the latter half of 2003 with Charles Bruce Berry at his home in Charlottesville, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, in 2004 British newspapers reported that she had had a four-year affair
Affair
Affair may refer to professional, personal, or public business matters or to a particular business or private activity of a temporary duration, as in family affair, a private affair, or a romantic affair.-Political affair:...
with the then-Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
. The affair, which had been well hinted at in UK newspaper gossip columns, included passionate London taxi cab rides around St John's Wood during which they would ask the cab driver to insert cassette tapes of Wyatt singing Puccini. Although Johnson had promised to leave his wife, after a break-up, they had rekindled their relationship during which Wyatt had become pregnant and then had an abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
; resulting in her mother discovering the affair and reporting it to the press. Johnson was sacked from his shadow cabinet
Shadow Cabinet
The Shadow Cabinet is a senior group of opposition spokespeople in the Westminster system of government who together under the leadership of the Leader of the Opposition form an alternative cabinet to the government's, whose members shadow or mark each individual member of the government...
post by Michael Howard
Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
, not because of the affair but because he had lied about it.
Wyatt, whose hobby is singing and lyric-writing, loves to sing Cole Porter
Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter was an American composer and songwriter. Born to a wealthy family in Indiana, he defied the wishes of his domineering grandfather and took up music as a profession. Classically trained, he was drawn towards musical theatre...
; and her party trick, which she performed for Norman Lamont’s birthday, is singing Lili Marlene in the husky tones of Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
. Wyatt co-wrote a cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
act called Kiss and Tell with the pianist and composer Jeremy Limb, poet Lloyd Evans, and opera singer Melinda Hughes. It debuted at London club Volstead in November 2007.
Wyatt writes about her attention to her Wikipedia entry. In May 2007, Private Eye
Private Eye
Private Eye is a fortnightly British satirical and current affairs magazine, edited by Ian Hislop.Since its first publication in 1961, Private Eye has been a prominent critic and lampooner of public figures and entities that it deemed guilty of any of the sins of incompetence, inefficiency,...
reported that Wyatt had been instructed by Paul Dacre
Paul Dacre
Paul Michael Dacre is a British journalist and current editor of the British newspaper the Daily Mail. He is also editor in chief of the Mail group titles, which also includes The Mail on Sunday. He is also a director of the Daily Mail and General Trust plc and was a member of the Press Complaints...
, the editor of the Daily Mail, to pen an attack on Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
over the content of her entry on the site. This was published on 22 April 2007 when Wyatt admitted to writing her initial entry and then threatening to sue over vandalism to the page.
She writes against cycling in London
Cycling in London
Cycling in London has enjoyed a renaissance since the millennium. London's cyclists enjoy a cheaper, and often quicker, way around town than those by public transport or car, and as many trips in London are local, these can easily be done by bike. As London's public transport system is...
, as championed by her ex-lover Boris Johnson, now Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
. Her half-brother, Pericles Wyatt, promotes cycling where he lives.
Publications
- Father, dear Father: Life with Woodrow Wyatt, HutchinsonHutchinson (publisher)Hutchinson & Co. was an English book publisher, founded in 1887. The company merged with Century Publishing in 1985 to form Century Hutchinson, and was folded into the British Random House Group in 1989, where it remains as an imprint in the Cornerstone Publishing division...
, London, 1999. ISBN 0-09-929760-4