Simon Heffer

Last updated

Simon Heffer
Born
Simon James Heffer

(1960-07-18) 18 July 1960 (age 63)
Chelmsford, Essex, England
Education King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford
Alma mater Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Occupations
  • Historian
  • journalist
  • author
  • political commentator
Spouse
Diana Caroline Heffer
(m. 1987)
Children2

Simon James Heffer (born 18 July 1960) is an English historian, journalist, author and political commentator. He has published several biographies and a series of books on the social history of Great Britain from the mid-nineteenth century until the end of the First World War. He was appointed professorial research fellow at the University of Buckingham in 2017.

Contents

He worked as a columnist for the Daily Mail and since 2015 has had a weekly column in The Sunday Telegraph . As a political commentator, Heffer takes a socially conservative position.

Early life and education

Heffer was born in Chelmsford, Essex, and was educated there at King Edward VI Grammar School before going to read English at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge (MA); after he had become a successful journalist, his old university later awarded him a PhD in History for a book on Enoch Powell. [1]

Career

Journalism

Heffer worked for The Daily Telegraph until 1995. He worked as a columnist for the Daily Mail from 1995 to 2005. He rejoined the Telegraph in October 2005 as a columnist and associate editor. Martin Newland, the Daily Telegraph's editor at the time, described the newspaper as Heffer's "natural journalistic home". [2] He left the Telegraph in May 2011 to "pursue a role in journalism and broadcasting" and "complete a major literary project". [3] It had been speculated that his departure had been prompted by his constant attacks on David Cameron's government, of which the Telegraph had been generally supportive. [4] Heffer later rejoined the Daily Mail to edit a new online comment section, called RightMinds, of the paper's online edition. [5] [6] He returned to the Daily Telegraph in June 2015 and has a weekly column in the Sunday Telegraph . [7]

Historian and author

Heffer has written biographies of the historian and essayist Thomas Carlyle, the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams and of the British politician Enoch Powell ( Like the Roman ), which was described by the New Statesman as "a lucid and majestic tribute" to the politician. [8] [9] He received his PhD in modern history from Cambridge University for the 1998 Powell biography. [10]

In September 2010, Heffer published Strictly English: the Correct Way to Write... and Why it Matters, a guide to English grammar and usage. The book met with some negative reception. [11] Since 2010 he has published several historical works such as A Short History of Power (2010) and a series of three books on the social history of Great Britain from the mid nineteenth century until the end of the First World War: High Minds: the Victorians and the Birth of Modern Britain (2013), The Age of Decadence: Britain 1880 to 1914 and Staring at God: Britain 1914 to 1919 (2019).

Heffer became a professorial research fellow at the University of Buckingham in 2017. [10]

Hillsborough comments

Heffer said in 2012 that he wrote the first draft of a Spectator editorial in 2004 regarding the death of Kenneth Bigley, which said in part:

The extreme reaction to Mr Bigley's murder is fed by the fact that he was a Liverpudlian. Liverpool is a handsome city with a tribal sense of community. A combination of economic misfortune – its docks were, fundamentally, on the wrong side of England when Britain entered what is now the European Union – and an excessive predilection for welfarism have created a peculiar, and deeply unattractive, psyche among many Liverpudlians. They see themselves whenever possible as victims, and resent their victim status; yet at the same time they wallow in it. ... They cannot accept that they might have made any contribution to their misfortunes, but seek rather to blame someone else for it, thereby deepening their sense of shared tribal grievance against the rest of society. The deaths of more than 50 Liverpool football supporters at Hillsborough in 1989 was undeniably a greater tragedy than the single death, however horrible, of Mr Bigley; but that is no excuse for Liverpool's failure to acknowledge, even to this day, the part played in the disaster by drunken fans at the back of the crowd who mindlessly tried to fight their way into the ground that Saturday afternoon. The police became a convenient scapegoat, and The Sun newspaper a whipping-boy for daring, albeit in a tasteless fashion, to hint at the wider causes of the incident. [12]

These comments (sometimes incorrectly attributed to the then-editor of the Spectator, Boris Johnson) were widely circulated following the April 2016 verdict by the Hillsborough inquest's second hearing proving unlawful killing of the 96 dead at Hillsborough. [13] Johnson apologised at the time of the publication, saying: "That was a lie that unfortunately and very, very regrettably got picked up in a leader in the Spectator in 2004, which I was then editing." [14]

Politics

Heffer was politically left-wing in his teenage years, but had abandoned his views by the time he went to university, although he states he still has a lingering respect and affection for several past figures of the left, such as Michael Foot and Tony Benn. [15]

Heffer is a social conservative, though in a recent interview he described himself as a Gladstonian Liberal. He supported the retention of Section 28, opposed the equalisation of the age of consent and the liberalisation of laws on abortion and divorce. [16] He opposed the removal of hereditary peers from the House of Lords in 1999. [17]

Heffer believes that Christianity should have a strong role in shaping both the moral foundation of society and public policy, but he is personally an atheist. [18]

In 2008, Heffer called for the United Nations to be strengthened: "If the UN ceases to be regarded by the larger powers as an institution to secure the peace of the world and justice therein, then that holds out all sorts of potential dangers." [19] On 27 May 2009, Heffer threatened to stand as an independent against Sir Alan Haselhurst, [20] his local Conservative MP and a deputy speaker, unless Haselhurst paid back the £12,000 he claimed for work on his garden, as revealed in the Parliamentary expenses scandal. [21] A month later, Haselhurst announced that he would pay the £12,000 back, while insisting it had been claimed within the rules. [22]

In 2010, Heffer criticised the then Prime Minister, David Cameron, and modernising elements within the Conservative Party. [23] [24]

Heffer has written sympathetically about and backed the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) and Nigel Farage. [25] He supported the UK's withdrawal from the EU in the Brexit referendum. In an article in the Daily Telegraph, Heffer suggested that some of those who supported Britain remaining in the European Union were members of the Bilderberg Group and attendees of the World Economic Forum at Davos. [26] From 2016 to 2019, he was part of the political advisory board of Leave Means Leave. [27]

Personal life

Heffer married his wife Diana Caroline in 1987. He has two children. Heffer lives in Essex with his family. His passions outside of politics include classical music and cricket. [28] [29]

Bibliography

Books

Book reviews

YearReview articleWork(s) reviewed
2014Heffer, Simon (21 November 2014). "The unfinished battles of Waterloo". New Statesman. 143 (5237): 44–45.
  • Cornwell, Bernard (2014). Waterloo : the history of four days, three armies and three battles. London: William Collins.
  • Kershaw, Robert. 24 hours at Waterloo : 18 June 1815. W. H. Allen.
  • O'Keeffe, Paul. Waterloo : the aftermath. Bodley Head.
  • Clayton, Tim. Waterloo : four days that changed Europe's destiny. Little, Brown.
  • Simms, Brendan (2014). The longest afternoon : the four hundred men who decided the Battle of Waterloo. Allen Lane.

Critical studies and reviews of Heffer's work

High minds

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enoch Powell</span> British politician (1912–1998)

John Enoch Powell was a British politician. He served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (1950–1974) and was Minister of Health (1960–1963) then Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) MP (1974–1987). Before entering politics, Powell was a classical scholar. During the Second World War, he served in both staff and intelligence positions, reaching the rank of brigadier. He also wrote poetry, and many books on classical and political subjects.

<i>The Spectator</i> British weekly conservative magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs

The Spectator is a weekly British news magazine focusing on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. The Spectator is politically conservative, and its principal subject areas are politics and culture. Alongside columns and features on current affairs, the magazine also contains arts pages on books, music, opera, film, and TV reviews. In 2021, it had an average circulation of 102,212.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norman Tebbit</span> English politician

Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment (1981–1983), Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1983–1985), and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Chairman of the Conservative Party (1985–1987). He was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1970 to 1992, representing the constituencies of Epping (1970–1974) and Chingford (1974–1992).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thatcherism</span> British conservative ideology from the 1980s onward

Thatcherism is a form of British conservative ideology named after Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher that relates to not just her political platform and particular policies but also her personal character and style of management while in office. Proponents of Thatcherism are referred to as Thatcherites. The term has been used to describe the principles of the British government under Thatcher from the 1979 general election to her resignation in 1990, but it also receives use in describing administrative efforts continuing into the Conservative governments under John Major and David Cameron throughout the 1990s and 2010s. In international terms, Thatcherites have been described as a part of the general socio-economic movement known as neoliberalism, with different countries besides the United Kingdom sharing similar policies around expansionary capitalism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rivers of Blood speech</span> 1968 speech by British politician Enoch Powell

The "Rivers of Blood" speech was made by British Member of Parliament (MP) Enoch Powell on 20 April 1968, to a meeting of the Conservative Political Centre in Birmingham, England. His speech made various remarks, which included strong criticism of significant Commonwealth immigration to the United Kingdom and the proposed Race Relations Act, which made it illegal to refuse housing, employment, or public services to a person on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national origins in the country. It became known as the "Rivers of Blood" speech, although Powell always referred to it as "the Birmingham speech". The former name alludes to a prophecy from Virgil's Aeneid which Powell, a former classical scholar, quoted:

As I look ahead, I am filled with foreboding; like the Roman, I seem to see 'the River Tiber foaming with much blood'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Haselhurst, Baron Haselhurst</span> British Conservative politician and life peer

Alan Gordon Barraclough Haselhurst, Baron Haselhurst,, is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Saffron Walden from 1977 to 2017, having previously represented Middleton and Prestwich from 1970 to 1974. Haselhurst was Chairman of Ways and Means from 14 May 1997 to 8 June 2010, and later Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association between 2011 and 2014. The oldest Conservative MP to stand down at the 2017 general election, he was created a Life Peer in May 2018, sitting in the House of Lords as Baron Haselhurst.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Hannan</span> British politician (born 1971)

Daniel John Hannan, Baron Hannan of Kingsclere is a British writer, journalist and politician. He is currently a sitting member of the House of Lords where he takes the Conservative whip, and has since 2020 served as an adviser to the Board of Trade. He is the founding president of the Initiative for Free Trade. A member of the Conservative Party, he was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England from 1999 to 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kidnapping and murder of Kenneth Bigley</span> British civil engineer and murder victim

Kenneth John Bigley was a British civil engineer who was kidnapped by Islamic extremists in the al-Mansour district of Baghdad, Iraq, on 16 September 2004, along with his colleagues, U.S. citizens Jack Hensley and Eugene Armstrong. Following the murders of Hensley and Armstrong by beheading over the course of three days, Bigley was killed in the same manner two weeks later, despite the attempted intervention of the Muslim Council of Britain and the indirect intervention of the British government. Videos of the killings were posted on websites and blogs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Goodhart</span> British journalist, commentator and author

David Goodhart is a British journalist, commentator and author. He is the founder and a former editor of Prospect magazine.

Maurice John Cowling was a British historian. A fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge, for most of his career, Cowling was a leading conservative exponent of the 'high politics' approach to political history.

Powellism is the name given to the political views of Conservative and Ulster Unionist politician Enoch Powell. They derive from his High Tory and libertarian outlook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Johnson</span> British journalist

Rachel Sabiha Johnson is a British journalist, television presenter, and author who has appeared frequently on political discussion panels, including The Pledge on Sky News and BBC One's debate programme, Question Time. In January 2018, she participated in the 21st series of Celebrity Big Brother and was evicted second. She was the lead candidate for Change UK for the South West England constituency in the 2019 European Parliament election.

The West Bromwich by-election of 24 May 1973 was held after the appointment of Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Maurice Foley to the European Commission. Held continuously by Labour since 1935 it was retained in this by-election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Murray (author)</span> British author and right wing political commentator

Douglas Murray is a British author and conservative political commentator. He founded the Centre for Social Cohesion in 2007, which became part of the Henry Jackson Society, where he was associate director from 2011 to 2018. He is currently an associate editor of the conservative British political and cultural magazine The Spectator.

<i>The Daily Telegraph</i> British daily broadsheet newspaper

The Daily Telegraph, known online and elsewhere as The Telegraph, is a British daily conservative broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was founded by Arthur B. Sleigh in 1855 as The Daily Telegraph & Courier. The Telegraph is considered a newspaper of record. The paper's motto, "Was, is, and will be", was included in its emblem which was used for over a century starting in 1858.

Andrew Simon Feldman, Baron Feldman of Elstree, is a British barrister, businessman and Conservative fundraiser and politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. E. Utley</span>

Thomas Edwin Utley, known as Peter Utley, was a British High Tory journalist and writer.

Daniel Pearce Jackson Hodges is a British newspaper columnist. Since March 2016, he has written a weekly column for The Mail on Sunday. Prior to this, he was a columnist for The Daily Telegraph and in 2013 was described by James Forsyth in The Spectator as David Cameron's "new favourite columnist".

<i>Brexit: The Movie</i> 2016 British documentary film by Martin Durkin

Brexit: The Movie is a 2016 British film written and directed by Martin Durkin, advocating for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, commonly called Brexit. The film's production was funded through crowdfunding via Kickstarter.

There have been incidents of racism in the Conservative Party since at least 1964. Conservative shadow defence minister Enoch Powell's "Rivers of Blood" speech in 1968 was both influential and widely regarded as anti-immigrant with racist overtones; the party's leader at the time, Edward Heath, condemned it, although some Conservative MPs defended Powell's speech. Since then, accusations have been made about several leading members of the party and its policies; these have related to prejudice against non-white people.

References

  1. Brook, Stephen (1 December 2009). "Simon Heffer to take sabbatical from Daily Telegraph". The Guardian . Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  2. "Columnist Simon Heffer to join the Daily Telegraph". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2006.
  3. Robinson, James (11 May 2011). "Simon Heffer to leave Daily Telegraph". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 12 May 2001.
  4. Simon Heffer to leave Daily Telegraph, The Guardian , 11 May 2011
  5. Halliday, Josh (13 September 2011). "Simon Heffer launches MailOnline comment website RightMinds". The Guardian. London.
  6. Simon Heffer and media ownership, BBC Radio 4, 14 September 2011
  7. 'Culture isn't just nice – it's necessary', Daily Telegraph , 6 June 2015
  8. Ian Aitken (11 December 1998). "The long road to oblivion. Ian Aitken on Simon Heffer's lucid and majestic tribute to the controversial genius of Enoch Powell". New Statesman . Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  9. www.faber.co.uk Archived 11 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  10. 1 2 "Professor Simon Heffer". University of Buckingham. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  11. David Crystal (14 October 2010). "Strictly English: The Correct Way to Write...and Why it Matters By Simon Heffer". New Statesman . Archived from the original on 17 October 2010. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  12. "Bigley's fate". The Spectator. London: Press Holdings. 16 October 2004. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  13. Doré, Louis (26 April 2016). "The truth about that awful Boris Johnson 'quote' on Hillsborough". indy100. Archived from the original on 29 April 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  14. "Hillsborough: Boris Johnson apologises for slurs in 2004 Spectator article". Liverpool Echo. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  15. https://newhumanist.org.uk/articles/2430/calm-down-old-boy-laurie-taylor-interviews-simon-heffer
  16. Heffer, Simon (7 January 2006). "The sooner the 1960s are over, the better". Simon Heffer on Saturday. The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 14 May 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  17. Heffer, Simon (18 January 2011). "The last thing the House of Lords needs is a mass of elected members". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 19 January 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  18. Heffer, Simon (21 December 2005). "Stop apologising for being Christian". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 21 December 2005.
  19. Heffer, Simon (12 January 2008). "UK foreign interventions as a middling power". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 23 May 2010.[ dead link ]
  20. Simon Heffer "MPs' expenses: do the right thing, Sir Alan Haselhurst, or I will stand against you", Daily Telegraph, 27 May 2009.
  21. Stephen Brook "Daily Telegraph writer Simon Heffer threatens to stand against his Tory MP", The Guardian, 27 May 2009.
  22. "MP to pay back Gardening Expenses". Saffron Walden Conservatives. May 2009. Archived from the original on 29 June 2009. The expense claims I made over recent years have been strictly in accordance with Parliamentary rules… However, my claim for gardening help has caused concern. Out of respect to my constituents I am this week repaying the sum of £12,000.
  23. Heffer, Simon (18 May 2010). "Only a Tory without principles would demonise the Right". The Daily Telegraph . London.
  24. Heffer, Simon (21 May 2010). "Dave will rue the day he betrayed the Conservatives". The Daily Telegraph . London.
  25. Heffer, Simon (8 April 2006). "Not all the loonies are in UKIP, Dave". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 7 July 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  26. The EU Empire is going to fail. On Thursday, we can protect Britain from the chaos of its death throes, by Simon Heffer, in The Daily Telegraph, published 19 June 2016; retrieved 2 April 2017
  27. "Co-Chairmen – Political Advisory Board – Supporters". Leave Means Leave. Archived from the original on 4 February 2019.
  28. "Simon Heffer – Notting Hill Editions Author Profile". Notting Hill Editions. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  29. "Simon Heffer – Georgina Capel" . Retrieved 27 June 2022.
Media offices
Preceded by Deputy Editor of The Daily Telegraph
1994–1995
With: Veronica Wadley
Succeeded by