Colin Bell (journalist)

{{Short description|Scottish journalist (1938–2021)}}

{{for|other people|Colin Bell (disambiguation)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}

{{Use British English|date=February 2018}}

Colin J. Bell (1 April 1938 – 9 October 2021) was a Scottish journalist, broadcaster and author.

Bell was educated at St Paul's School, London, and King's College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1959 with a first-class degree in the Historical Tripos.'Cambridge Tripos Results', Times, 26 June 1959. He went on to become a journalist with various newspapers, including The Scotsman, and was once editor of The Scots Independent. He made the transition to broadcasting with BBC Radio Scotland in 1984.{{cite web|url=http://www.scotsindependent.org/brown/colin_bell.htm |title=Dr Colin Bell |publisher=Scots Independent |accessdate=2008-08-17 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101201115733/http://scotsindependent.org/brown/colin_bell.htm |archivedate=2010-12-01 |url-status=usurped }}

Bell served the Scottish National Party (SNP) as Executive Vice-Chairman from 1978 to 1984, and was the party's Campaign Director for the European Parliament elections in 1984. In 1979 he stood as SNP Parliamentary Candidate for Edinburgh West,{{cite web |url=http://www.scottishpolitics.org/nextwe/l06.html |title=Candidates and Constituency Assessments: Edinburgh West |publisher=Scottish Politics Research Unit |accessdate=2008-08-17 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719183505/http://www.scottishpolitics.org/nextwe/l06.html |archivedate=19 July 2011 |url-status=dead }} and also as the European Parliamentary Candidate for North East Scotland that same year.{{cite web |url=http://www.scottishpolitics.org/eecelect/nes.html |title=European Parliamentary Elections: North-east Scotland |publisher=Scottish Politics Research Unit |accessdate=2008-08-17 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719183554/http://www.scottishpolitics.org/eecelect/nes.html |archivedate=19 July 2011 |url-status=dead }} In June 1996, he was the 13th Scot to be presented with the Oliver Brown Award. He later left the SNP to join the Scottish Socialist Party.{{cite web |url=http://www.scotsindependent.org/2001/010511/index.htm |title=Dr Colin Bell |publisher=Scots Independent |issue=49 |date=11 May 2001 |accessdate=2008-08-17 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007005223/http://www.scotsindependent.org/2001/010511/index.htm |archivedate=7 October 2008 |url-status=usurped }}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2001/may/13/election2001.comment?commentpage=1 |title=Devolution's sweet honeytrap |author=Arnold Kemp |work=The Observer |date=13 May 2001 |accessdate=2008-08-17 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113052245/http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2001/may/13/election2001.comment?commentpage=1 |archivedate=2012-11-13 |url-status=live }}

Bell wrote Murder Trail: Death for a Living.{{cite web|url=http://www.foyles.co.uk/display.asp?K=9780233050997| title=Murder Trail| publisher=Foyles| accessdate=2008-08-17}}{{Dead link|date=July 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite book| author=Colin Bell (academic)| title=Murder trail : death for a living| publisher=Grenada Media| location=London| date=2002| isbn=978-0-233-05099-7}} He served as Rector of Aberdeen University from 1991 to 1993.

Bell died on 9 October 2021, at the age of 83.{{cite news |title=Obituary: Colin Bell, formidable broadcaster who delighted in being intellectually provocative |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/19711516.obituary-colin-bell-formidable-broadcaster-delighted-intellectually-provocative/ |access-date=11 July 2022 |publisher=The Herald |date=11 November 2021}}