Arthur Walter James
{{Short description|British politician (1912–2015)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Arthur Walter James
| image = Arthur_Walter_James.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| other_names =
| occupation = Politician, journalist
| birth_place =
| death_place =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1912|06|30|df=y}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|2015|8|05|1912|6|30|df=yes}}
| spouse = {{unbulleted list
| {{marriage|Elisabeth Howroyd|1939|1956|reason=divorced}}
| {{marriage|Ann Burton|1957}}
}}
| children = 5
}}
Arthur Walter James (30 June 1912 – 5 August 2015) was a British journalist and Liberal Party politician.
Background
He was the son of W.J. James OBE. He was educated at Uckfield Grammar School and Keble College, Oxford, where he obtained a 1st Class degree in Modern History. He was a Liddon Student and an Arnold Essay Prizeman. He married, in 1939, Elisabeth Howroyd. They had one daughter. The marriage was dissolved in 1956. He then remarried in 1957 to Ann Jocelyn Burton. They had one daughter, one adopted son and two adopted daughters. She died in 2004.‘JAMES, (Arthur) Walter’, Who's Who 2014, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2013; online edn, Dec 2013 [http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U21732, accessed 2 Dec 2013] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212090814/https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540891.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-21732 |date=12 February 2020 }}
Professional career
He was Senior Demy of Magdalen College, Oxford, 1935; Scholar in Mediæval Studies, British School at Rome, 1935; He was on the Editorial staff, at the Manchester Guardian, 1937–46. NFS 1939–45. He moved to London where he was Deputy Editor, of The Times Educational Supplement, 1947–51, Editor, 1952–69; Special Advisor on Education, of Times Newspapers, 1969–71; and Editor, Technology, 1957–60. He was Reader in Journalism, at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, 1971–74. He was a Member of: the BBC General Advisory Council, 1956–64; Council of Industrial Design, 1961–66; Council, Royal Society of Arts, 1964; Committee, British-American Associates, 1964; He was a Governor, of Central School of Art and Design, 1966. Woodard Lecturer, 1965.
Political career
Both James and his first wife, Elisabeth Howroyd were active in politics for the Liberal Party in the Manchester area. He took a particular interest in the Liberal policy of Profit sharing. He was a Liberal candidate for the Bury Division of Lancashire at the 1945 General Election.
{{Election box begin |
|title=General Election 1945: BuryBritish Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Conservative Party (UK)
|candidate = Walter Fletcher
|votes = 14,012
|percentage = 39.9
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Labour Party (UK)
|candidate = Sydney Hand
|votes = 13,902
|percentage = 39.6
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Liberal Party (UK)
|candidate = Arthur Walter James
|votes = 7,211
|percentage = 20.5
|change =
}}
{{Election box majority|
|votes = 110
|percentage = 0.3
|change =
}}
{{Election box turnout|
|votes =
|percentage = 78.2
|change =
}}
{{Election box hold with party link|
|winner = Conservative Party (UK)
|swing =
}}
{{Election box end}}
After the election he was re-adopted by the Bury Liberal Association to contest the seat again and remained PPC through to 1947 when he moved to London. Following boundary changes, the seat was abolished and he did not stand for parliament again.The Liberal Magazine, 1945-47
Later years
Upon turning 100, he wrote an article for The Sunday Times reflecting on his age.[https://web.archive.org/web/20130322021014/http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/newsreview/features/article1177117.ece Article title] He was believed to be one of only three known surviving candidates from the 1945 general election. The others being Denis Healey and Jeremy Hutchinson.{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/the-times-diary-tms-bush-sacrifice-at-blairs-altar-la-guillotine-est-pret-tuning-in-or-turning-off-and-happy-birthday-jeremy-0zch389zhl8 |title=The Times Diary |work=The Times |date=28 March 2014 |page=11 |access-date=28 March 2014 |archive-date=10 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210230616/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/article4047492.ece |url-status=live }} He died on 5 August 2015, aged 103.{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/comment/register/article/walter-james-slmb9l3zd3h?region=global |title=Walter James |work=The Times |date=13 August 2015 |page=51 |access-date=13 August 2015 |archive-date=14 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150814002211/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/obituaries/article4525609.ece |url-status=live }}
Publications
He was the Editor of Temples and Faiths 1958; The Christian in Politics, 1962; The Teacher and his World, 1962; A Middle-class Parent's Guide to Education, 1964; He was also a contributor to Looking Forward to the Seventies, 1967.
References
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Category:Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates
Category:Alumni of Keble College, Oxford