George Meadus Rainbird (22 May 1905 – 20 August 1986) was a British publisher, and the founder of the eponymous publishing house George Rainbird Ltd.

Early life

He was born on 22 May 1905,https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVZ9-QLDM the son of Leonard Rainbird and Sarah Rainbird nee Meadus.

Career

Rainbird had been an advertising executive, before starting a career in publishing in 1951. In 1951, he founded George Rainbird Ltd. It acquired Zaehnsdorf Ltd and Wigmore Bindery Ltd in 1954 to 1956. It merged with the

Thomson Organization International Thomson Organization (ITO) was a holding company for interests in publishing, travel, and natural resources, that existed from 1978 to 1989. It was formed as a reorganisation of the Thomson Organization, which had been founded by Roy ...

in 1965. Edmund Fisher left W. H. Allen & Co. and joined Rainbird. After he retired and sold his publishing house to Roy Thomson, Fisher took over as its head, until Thomson appointed him as managing director of Michael Joseph, which Thomson had also acquired. Rainbird was a director of Thomson Publications Ltd from 1966 to 1977, and its deputy chairman from 1973 to 1977. He was the chairman of Thomas Nelson & Sons Ltd, George Rainbird Ltd, Rainbird Reference Books Ltd, Sphere Books Ltd, and

Michael Joseph Ltd Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year. He was the chairman of Westerham Press Ltd from 1972 to 1975; and Acanthus Press Ltd from 1979 until his death.

Selected publications (as author)

* ''Escape to Sunshine'', 1952 * ''A Pocket Book of Wine'', 1963, (with

Ronald Searle Ronald William Fordham Searle, CBE, RDI (3 March 1920 – 30 December 2011) was an English artist and satirical cartoonist, comics artist, sculptor, medal designer and illustrator. He is perhaps best remembered as the creator of St Trinian's S ...

); reprinted as ''The Subtle Alchemist'', 1973 * ''Sherry and the Wines of Spain'', 1966 * ''An Illustrated Guide to Wine'' (Octopus Books Ltd, London, 1983) * ''The Rainbird Archive'', 1985

Personal life

Rainbird's first marriage was in 1926, to Eva Warner, and they had a son and two daughters. His second marriage was in 1939, to Joyce "Joy" Trinder (died 1970), and they two sons and a daughter. In 1972, he married Lena Wickman (1917–1998), who survived him. Wickman was Swedish, and worked as a literary scout, and was best known for discovering

John le Carré David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...

and his debut novel '' The Spy Who Came In From The Cold'' (1963), and lived in

Bramerton Street Bramerton Street is a street in Chelsea, London. It runs roughly north to south from King's Road to Glebe Place. It was known as Caledonian Terrace until 1912. The Gateways Club, a lesbian nightclub was based on the corner with King's Road, ...

Chelsea, London Chelsea is an affluent area in west London, England, due south-west of Charing Cross by approximately 2.5 miles. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the south-western postal area. Chelsea histori ...

. In the 1950s, Rainbird bought

Whichford House Whichford House is a grade II* listed house in the village of Whichford, Warwickshire, England. Whichford House was built in the 17th century as St Michael's Rectory, and in the 18th century it was enhanced with an open stairwell, a stone chimne ...

in the village of

Whichford Whichford is a village and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, about southeast of Shipston-on-Stour. The parish adjoins the county boundary with Oxfordshire and the village is about north of the Oxfordshire town of Chipping Norton. The p ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...

, from the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

for £1,400, after it had ceased to be used as a rectory. His wife Joy planned and planted the garden with the assistance of plantsman and designer, James Russell, and it was featured in '' Country Life''. They were mainly based in London, and only visited at weekends and in the summer, although his "very old" father lived there year-round. Later in life, he lived at The Old Parsonage, Church Street,

Moreton-in-Marsh Moreton-in-Marsh is a market town in the Evenlode Valley, within the Cotswolds district and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Gloucestershire, England. The town stands at the crossroads of the Fosse Way Roman road (now the A429) and the ...

, Gloucestershire, and 45

. Rainbird died on 20 August 1986, aged 81.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rainbird, George British publishers (people) 1905 births 1986 deaths