"CASSANDRA" (WILLIAM CONNER, 1909-1967)

Conner left school at sixteen and tried to join the Royal Navy but was rejected because of his poor eyesight, taking on a series of clerical jobs before finding work as a copywriter for J. Walter Thompson. After six years at the agency he was recruited by Harry Guy Bartholomew, the editorial director of the Daily Mirror, and in 1934 they decided to turn the Daily Mirror into a tabloid newspaper. Connor, who wrote under the name Cassandra, helped to shape this new approach to journalism. Connor held left-wing political opinions and was a strong opponent of fascism, and in the 1930s he wrote several powerful articles against Neville Chamberlain and his appeasement policy. On the outbreak of the Second World War, Connor introduced his friend Philip Zec to Bartholomew, who liked Zec's work and commissioned him to do a daily cartoon. Connor often supplied Zec with the ideas and captions, before he joined the British Army. and served in Italy with Hugh Cudlipp where they produced the forces paper Union Jack. In 1965, Harold Wilson, the Labour prime minister, granted him a knighthood.

(Adapted from https://spartacus-educational.com/Jcassandra.htm)

Cassandra. "Help for Haile."

Cassandra. "Keep It Dark."

Cassandra. "The Answer Is a Lemon."

Cassandra. "Oxford Sees the Light!"

SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL (1874-1965)

Former British Prime Minister, who held the position from 1940 to 1945, and again from 1951 to 1955. He is regarded as one of the greatest statesman in history, who had varied relationship with the British press. He contributed a range of content to several notable newspapers, especially during his years before becoming Prime Minister as his reputation as a politician grew. His contributions include articles, letters, and extracts from his memoirs published in The Times and The Telegraph, and The Telegraph acquired the rights to publish extracts his official biography shortly before his death in 1965.

Churchill, Winston S. "Four Great Chapters of the World War."

Churchill, Winston S. "The Last Night of the Old World."

Churchill, Winston S. "The Supreme Symbols of Victory."

Churchill, Winston S. "How Antwerp Saved the Channel Ports."

HUGH CUDLIPP (1913-1998)

After leaving school at fourteen, Cudlipp became a junior reporter, becoming a sub-editor by the age of eighteen. Cuddlip joined the Daily Mirror as assistant features editor in 1935, and alongside Harry Guy Bartholomew, Cecil King and William Connor ("Cassandra"), helped to develop a new type of brash, social reforming, anti-establishment newspaper. Whereas newspapers such as the Daily Mail and the Evening News had given support to the right-wing governments in Germany, Italy and Spain, Cudlipp ensured that human rights violations in these countries were reported. The Daily Mirror consistently exposed the image of a harmless Adolf Hitler put out by those newspapers sympathetic to fascism. Cudlipp upset many people in the Conservative Party with his attacks on the Chamberlain government, and he ensured that the Daily Mirror remained a loyal supporter of the Labour Party. Cudlipp served as Chairman of the Mirror Group (1963-1967) and Chairman of the International Publishing Corporation (1968-1973). On his retirement he was created Baron Cudlipp, of Aldingbourne.

(Adapted from https://spartacus-educational.com/Jcudlipp.htm)

Cudlipp, Hugh. "The Man Stalin Fears!"

Cudlipp, Hugh. "A Vision of the New Britain."

Cudlipp, Hugh. "Mr. Churchill—And the People."

Cudlipp, Hugh. "'The Mills of God Grind Slowly …."

"DOROTHY DIX" (ELIZABETH MERIWEATHER GILMER, 1861–1951)

American journalist and advice columnist who penned the first syndicated newspaper column in the United States and set a precedent for generations of popular writers to follow. At the height of her popularity, Dix received more than 2,000 letters per week from advice seekers, and her columns on romantic affairs, etiquette, and other domestic questions reached as many as 60 million readers worldwide. After entering journalism, in 1901, William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal lured Dix to New York City, where she both continued her advice column and covered crime in the city. Readers enjoyed her sympathetic coverage of high-profile crimes and murder trials. After 1917 Dix focused her attention mostly on her syndicated advice column and joined the Wheeler Syndicate, trading up to the Ledger Syndicate in 1923 and the Bell Syndicate a decade later.

(Adapted from: "Dix, Dorothy." Encyclopedia of World Biography, edited by James Craddock, 2^nd ed., vol. 36, Gale, 2016)

Dix, Dorothy. "It Isn't Easy Being a Modern Wife."

Dix, Dorothy. "Before You Grumble Think of Your Blessings!"

Dix, Dorothy. "He Wants to Marry Me—But He Drinks!"

Dix, Dorothy. "Aren't Men Dumb?"

HENRY HAMILTON FYFE (1869-1951)

After finishing his education, he joined his father on the staff of The Times. As a young man he was a strong supporter of the Conservative Party and acted as a special constable at the Bloody Sunday demonstration at Trafalgar Square. After working as the theatre critic of The Times, Fyfe became editor of The Morning Advertiser in 1902. The youngest newspaper editor in Britain, Fyfe brought in several innovations including a gossip column and making recently published books into news stories. Alfred Harmsworth was impressed by Fyfe's work and the following year he appointed him editor of his newspaper, the Daily Mirror. Fyfe also experimented with using different types of photographs on the front page, and the sponsorship of special events. After four years with the newspaper, Alfred Harmsworth offered Fyfe the chance of becoming a special correspondent to his most popular newspaper, the Daily Mail. This appealed to Fyfe who had a great love of traveling. By this time Fyfe's political opinions had moved sharply to the left, and policy of employing Fyfe to write political leaders in the Daily Mail came to an end after he supported attempts by David Lloyd George to redistribute income with his 1909 People's Budget.

(Adapted from https://spartacus-educational.com/Jfyfe.htm)

Fyfe, H. Hamilton. "How Huns Are Massing."

Fyfe, Hamilton. "The Truth about the Bolsheviks."

Fyfe, Hamilton. "Is Germany Husbanding Her Air Strength?"

Fyfe, Hamilton. "If Labour Wants to Win."

NORMAN PETT (1891-1960)

Norman Pett was a British illustrator and comics artist, most famous for creating 'Jane' (1932-1959), one of the most infamous erotic comics of the 20^th century. The frequently nude heroine excited many British readers with her constant wardrobe malfunctions. The series ran for over two decades, but was particularly popular during World War II. Many soldiers enjoyed her adventures. On 5 December 1932 Pett launched his signature series: 'Jane's Journal, the Diary of a Bright Young Thing' which appeared in the Daily Mirror. Within less than a decade Pett achieved his goal. 'Jane' became one of the most widely read British newspaper comics of its time. The original comic strip was comparable to a daily gag comic, with a clear punchline in each final panel. Just like the title implies Jane's adventures were presented as a daily journal, with her handwritten entries being combined with Pett's drawings. Apart from the newspaper comic itself, Pett also published various booklets under the name 'Jane's Journal'. These are notable for not only featuring pin-up pictures, but also being in full colour as opposed to Jane's black-and-white adventures in the press.

(Adapted from https://www.lambiek.net/artists/p/pett_norman.htm)

"Jane's Journal."

"Jane's Journal."=

MARJORIE "MARJE" PROOPS (1911–1996)

British advice columnist and journalist. Born Rebecca Marjorie Israel in Tottenham, London, the daughter of salesman, she went to art school and became a freelance fashion artist, known as Marjorie Proops after her marriage. Around 1945 she became fashion editor of the London Daily Mirror newspaper and soon after began the advice column which made her nationally known, "Ask Marje." Emulating such American advice columnists as Abigail Van Buren, Proops became probably the best-known "Agony Aunt" (as such columnists are known) in Britain. She was especially noted for her extreme frankness on sexual matters and is seen as having a role in initiating the more liberal attitudes of the 1960s (adapted from Rubinstein, William D. "Proops, Marjorie." Encyclopaedia Judaica, edited by Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik, 2^nd ed., vol. 16, Macmillan Reference USA, 2007).

During the 1960s, she became a vocal advocate of abortion law reform, and supported the decriminalisation of homosexuality and gave Leo Abse (1917-2008), the Labour MP, advice when he was drafting his bills to decriminalise homosexuality in the mid-1960s (see Bingham, Adrian: "The Daily Mirror and Women").

Proops, Marje. "This Haunting Sadness."

Proops, Marje. "On the Far Side of the Pill."

Proops, Marje. "Allow Us an Equal Say This Time, Gentlemen."

Proops, Marje. "This Family Life-Line Must Stay in Mothers' Safe Hands."

MIRIAM STOPPARD (1937-)

After seven years practising medicine and specialising in dermatology she entered the pharmaceutical industry eventually holding the posts of Research Director and Managing Director. Later she developed a career in television, which spanned over 18 years, and since that time she has become well-known to millions all over the world as a leading authority on parenting, child care, women’s health, and many other crucial health issues. To date Miriam has published more than eighty books and sold in excess of 25 million copies worldwide on conception, pregnancy and birth, childcare and development, women’s and family health. She currently writes a daily page for the Daily Mirror. She is a medical doctor and Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, and in January 2010 Miriam received an OBE in the New Year’s Honour List for her services to healthcare and charity.

(Adapted from https://www.miriamstoppard.com/about)

Stoppard, Miriam. "Just the Job for a Dad."

Stoppard, Miriam. "Why MMR Really Is Best for Your Baby."

Stoppard, Miriam. "Can We Plug in to Back Pain Relief?"

Stoppard, Miriam. "It's Crazy and a Danger."

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