Biographies

J

Jack the Ripper: nickname of Victorian murderer, never caught or reliably identified.

Jackson, Henry (1839–1921). Classical scholar. Trinity, Cambridge: fellow 1864, assistant tutor 1866, praelector in ancient philosophy 1875, vice-master 1914. From 1906, Regius Professor of Greek.

Jackson, Sir Richard Leofric (1902–1975). Secretary of Metropolitan Police Office, 1946; Assistant Commissioner, Criminal Investigation Dept, New Scotland Yard, 1953–1963.

Jackson, Thomas Jonathan ('Stonewall') (1824–1863). Confederate general in the American Civil War.

Jacob, Gordon Percival Septimus (1895–1984). Composer and teacher. Pupil of Stanford, Vaughan Williams, Howells and Boult. Professor of Theory, Composition, and Orchestration, Royal College of Music, 1924–66, where his pupils included Malcolm Arnold and Imogen Holst. One of the most musically conservative of his generation of composers, despite GWL's animadversions.

Jacobs, William Wymark (1863–1943). Author, known for his humorous tales of 'the night watchman' and others, but also for his chilling short story 'The Monkey's Paw'.

Jaffé, (Andrew) Michael (1923–1997). Fellow of King's College, Cambridge, 1952. Director, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 1973–90; Professor of the History of Western Art, 1973–90. Publications include works on Van Dyck and Rubens.

James Henry (1843–1916). American-born, naturalised British novelist.

James, Montagu Rhodes (1862–1936). Author and Mediaeval scholar. Provost of King's College, Cambridge, 1905–1918, and of Eton College, 1918–1936). Remembered today for his ghost stories including Oh, Whistle and I'll Come to You My Lad, The Mezzotint, Lost Hearts, Canon Alberic's Scrapbook, Rats, and The Treasure of Abbot Thomas.

James, Mrs William (Willie) Dodge, née Evelyn Elizabeth Forbes (1868–1929); later (from 1913) Mrs John Chaytor Brinton. Society hostess.

Jameson, Tom Ormsby (1892–1965). Irish-born cricketer for Harrow, Hampshire and MCC between 1909 and 1932. Also a leading rackets player.

Januarius, Saint (a.k.a. San Gennaro). Bishop of Benevento and martyr, believed to have died in 305 during Diocletian's persecutions.

Jardine, Douglas Robert (1900–1958). Cricketer. Captain of the MCC team in the notorious 'bodyline' tour of Australia in 1932/33.

Jay, Douglas Patrick Thomas (1907–1996). Labour politician. Junior ministerial posts at the Treasury 1947–1951. President of the Board of Trade 1964–1967.

Jebb, Sir (Hubert Miles) Gladwyn (1900–1996). 1st Lord Gladwyn. Diplomat. British ambassador to France, 1954–60. Married 1929 Cynthia Noble, of whom The Times wrote, 'She was an intelligent, charming and dedicated hostess, whose Diaries—published posthumously in 1995, five years after her death—almost rival those of “Chips” Channon.'

Jeffrey, Francis (1773–1850). Lord Jeffrey. Scottish judge and literary critic. Editor of The Edinburgh Review 1803–29. Favoured the unchallenging and familiar rather than the innovative. Hostile to Shelley and Keats.

Jelly – see Churchill, Ernest.

Jenkins, Roy Harris (1920–2003). Baron Jenkins of Hillhead. Politician and author. Reforming Home Secretary, 1965–67. President of the European Commission (1977–81). Left the Labour Party to co-found the Social Democrats in 1981. Author of biographies of Dilkes (1958), Asquith (1964), Baldwin (1984), Truman (1986), Macmillan (1991), Gladstone (1995) and Churchill (2001). Chancellor of Oxford University, 1987–2003.

Jepson, Selwyn (1899–1989). Prolific author, notably of crime novels.

Jerrold, Douglas (1803–1857). Writer, humorist, and playwright, known for his Mrs Caudle's Curtain Lectures (1846)

Jessop, Gilbert Laird (1874–1955). Cricketer, known as the fastest run-scorer the game has ever known, and also a good fast bowler. Wisden Cricketer of the Year, 1898. England test cricketer, 1899–1912.

Jewsbury, Geraldine Endsor (1812–1880) Literary critic and author. As well as novels, children's stories and reviews she is remembered for the 126 letters she wrote to Jane Welsh Carlyle, the wife of Thomas Carlyle, during more than fifty years of friendship.

Joad, Cyril Edwin Mitchinson (1891–1953). Philosopher and broadcaster, best known for his appearances on BBC radio's Brains Trust.

Joffre, Joseph (1852–1931). French commander-in-chief at the start of WWI, responsible for the French victory on the Marne in September 1914, but later failures led to his removal in 1916, replaced by General Nivelle.

John XXIII: Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881–1963). Italian RC priest. Pope, 1958–63.

Johns, William Earl (1893–1968). Author of the 'Biggles' series of adventure stories for boys.

Johnson, (Arthur) Basil Noel (1861–1950). Music master, Rugby, 1886–1914, Eton 1914–26.

Johnson, Dame Celia Elizabeth (1908–1982). Actress, known for her roles in the films, Brief Encounter, opposite Trevor Howard, and In Which We Serve, opposite Noel Coward. On stage she appeared with distinction in Chekhov and Shakespeare, and in later years in West End comedies. Married Peter Fleming.

Johnson, (Hubert) Laurence ('Laurie') (1927–). West Indies-born cricketer who played first class cricket for  Derbyshire between 1949 and 1966 .

Johnson, Lionel (1867–1902). Poet and literary critic. He introduced his cousin Lord Alfred Douglas to Oscar Wilde. Some writers have it that Johnson was Douglas's lover, cut out by Wilde; whatever the reason, Johnson conceived a hatred for Wilde, expressed in the sonnet The Destroyer of a Soul. He died as a result of a fall: again authorities differ—some say he fell in the street, others that he fell from a bar-stool.

Johnson, Paul Bede (1928–). Journalist. Associated with The New Statesman from 1955; editor 1965–70. In later years changed his political affiliations, espousing some remarkable right-wing causes.

Johnson, Samuel (1709–1784). Poet, essayist, biographer, lexicographer and critic of English literature. One of the most quoted of English writers after Shakespeare.

Jolas, Eugene (1894–1952) Franco-American writer, translator and literary critic. Born in America but grew up in Lorraine where his family returned when he was two years old. He spent periods of his adult life living in both the U.S. and France, but wrote mostly in English. Co-founder of the influential Parisian literary magazine, Transition.

Jonah – see Jones, Sir Lawrence.

Jones, Arthur Owen (1872–1914). Cricketer, Cambridge University, Nottinghamshire (captain 1900–14) and England.

Jones, Ernest (1869–1943) Cricketer. Noted fast bowler for Australia 1894–1902. Toured England with the 1896, 1899 and 1902 Australian teams.

Jones, Sir Lawrence Evelyn ('Jonah') (1885–1969). Lawyer, merchant banker, and writer. Publications include You and the Peace (with G B Shirlaw); The Bishop and the Cobbler; Jesus; Discoverer and Genius; Beyond Belief; A la Carte; Stings and Honey; A Victorian Boyhood; An Edwardian Youth; Georgian Afternoon; I forgot to Tell You; The Bishop's Aunt; Trepidation in Downing Street; Father Lascaut Hits Back. Married, 1912, Lady Evelyn Alice Grey. 3 daughters, including Lavinia.

Jonson, Ben (1572–1637) Playwright, poet and actor, best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone and The Alchemist.

Joseph, Michael (1897–1956). Publisher.

Jovanovich, William (1920–2001). Publisher, editor and author. Head of Harcourt Brace 1954–90. When he took over, the company had annual sales of $8 million and 125 employees. By 1990 the figures were $1.7 billion and 12,000. He left the company heavily in debt incurred in fighting off a takeover by Robert Maxwell and the company was sold a year after he left.

Jowett, Benjamin (1817–1893). Anglican priest, Greek scholar, Master of Balliol College, Oxford, 1870–93.

Jowitt, William Allen (1885–1957). Earl Jowitt. Lawyer and politician. Lord Chancellor in the government of Clement Attlee, 1945–51.

Joyce, James Augustine Aloysius (1882–1941). Irish-born writer known for the short story collection Dubliners (1914), the semi-autobiographical novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916), the unorthodox novel Ulysses (1922) and its even less orthodox successor Finnegans Wake (1939).