William Richard Titterton (1876–1963) was a British journalist, writer and poet now remembered as the friend and first biographer of

G. K. Chesterton Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936) was an English writer, philosopher, Christian apologist, and literary and art critic. He has been referred to as the "prince of paradox". Of his writing style, ''Time'' observed: "Wh ...

. Titterton and Chesterton met on the London '' Daily News''.

Early life

In his younger days, he wrote copiously for

A. R. Orage Alfred Richard Orage (22 January 1873 – 6 November 1934) was a British influential figure in socialist politics and modernist culture, now best known for editing the magazine ''The New Age'' before the First World War. While he was working as a ...

's ''The New Age''. He was the model for some of Jacob Epstein's nude sculptures; he modelled too for George Grey Barnard, for the

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

courthouse.

The Weekly and the League

Titterton was in practical terms the organiser of Chesterton's Distributist League, and sub-editor of ''

G. K.'s Weekly ''G.K.'s Weekly'' was a British publication founded in 1925 (with its pilot edition surfacing in late 1924) by writer G. K. Chesterton, continuing until his death in 1936. Its articles typically discussed topical cultural, political, and socio-e ...

''. There were financial problems, and embarrassment caused by Titterton's commissioning of articles on H. G. Wells by the lesser writer

Edwin Pugh Edwin William Pugh (1874 - 5 February 1930) was an English writer. He published 33 books, primarily novels and short story collections, and focused on working-class "cockney school" storylines. The Modernist Journals Project finds that "Pugh's ...

; Pugh's articles had a hostile edge and Chesterton had to pacify Wells. His position on the ''Weekly'' came to an end in 1928, when he was replaced by Edward Macdonald, in a temporarily acrimonious situation, leading to the separation of the ''Weekly'' and the League. Under Chesterton's influence, he became a Catholic convert in 1931. Joseph Pearce, ''Literary Converts'' (1999), p. 190.

Works

*''River Music and other poems'' (1900) *''Love Poems'' (New Age Press, c 1908) *''An Afternoon Tea Philosophy'' (1910) *''The Drifters'' (1910) *''Me As A Model'' (1914) *''London Scenes'' (1918) *''Guns and Guitars'' (1918) poems *''Drinking Songs and other songs'' (1928) *''A Candle to the Stars'' (1932) interviews *''G. K. Chesterton: A Portrait'' (1936) biography
Online text (PDF)
*''Poems for the Forces'' (1943) *''London Pride'' (1944) *''So this is Shaw'' (1945) biography *''Poems: A Backward Glance'' (1959)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Titterton, W. R. British biographers British male journalists British poets Converts to Roman Catholicism 1876 births 1963 deaths British male poets British male biographers