Anne Eleanor Scott-James, Lady Lancaster (5 April 1913 – 13 May 2009) was a British

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. She was one of Britain's first female career journalists,

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, or ...

s and columnists, and latterly author of a series of gardening books.

Biography

She was born in

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, an ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1913. Her father was the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

journalist and

literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. ...

R. A. Scott-James, later editor of the '' London Mercury''; her mother was also a journalist. She was educated at

St Paul's Girls' School St Paul's Girls' School is an independent day school for girls, aged 11 to 18, located in Brook Green, Hammersmith, in West London, England. History St Paul's Girls' School was founded by the Worshipful Company of Mercers in 1904, using part o ...

and

Somerville College Somerville College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England, was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. Among its alumnae have been Margaret Thatcher, Indira Gandhi, Dorothy Hodgkin, ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. She gained a First in Honour Moderations but did not complete her degree. She joined the staff of ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'' in 1934, initially as a secretary, but quickly advanced to become a

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the form of a short essay ...

, and latterly, Beauty Editor. In 1939, she married the editor and

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

Derek Verschoyle, but they soon divorced. On the outbreak of

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, she joined the staff of ''

Picture Post ''Picture Post'' was a photojournalistic magazine published in the United Kingdom from 1938 to 1957. It is considered a pioneering example of photojournalism and was an immediate success, selling 1,700,000 copies a week after only two months. ...

'' and was its Women's Editor from 1941 to 1945. While at ''Picture Post'', she met and married the journalist Macdonald Hastings. They had two children, one of whom is Sir Max Hastings, the journalist and former

of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

''. Her daughter,

Clare Hastings Clare Hastings is a British author, and a former fashion journalist, stylist and costume designer. Early life She is the daughter of Macdonald Hastings and Anne Scott-James, and sister to Max Hastings. Career Hastings worked for over 30 years ...

, is the author of ''The House in Little Chelsea'' and a gardening book ''Gardening Notes from a Late Bloomer''. From 1945 to 1951, Scott-James was the editor of the British ''Harper's Bazaar'', during which time she commissioned work from such individuals as

Cecil Beaton Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, (14 January 1904 – 18 January 1980) was a British fashion, portrait and war photographer, diarist, painter, and interior designer, as well as an Oscar–winning stage and costume designer for films and the t ...

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture ...

and

Elizabeth David Elizabeth David CBE (born Elizabeth Gwynne, 26 December 1913 – 22 May 1992) was a British cookery writer. In the mid-20th century she strongly influenced the revitalisation of home cookery in her native country and beyond with articles and bo ...

. Her novel ''In the Mink'' was published in 1952. She became Woman's Editor for the '' Sunday Express'' (1953–57) and columnist for the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' (1960–68). In 1964 she succeeded

Nancy Spain Nancy Brooker Spain (13 September 1917 – 21 March 1964) was a prominent English broadcaster and journalist. She was a columnist for the ''Daily Express'', ''She'' magazine, and the ''News of the World'' in the 1950s and 1960s. She also appeare ...

as a panellist on the BBC radio

panel game A panel show or panel game is a radio or television game show in which a panel of celebrities participates. Celebrity panelists may compete with each other, such as on ''The News Quiz''; facilitate play by non-celebrity contestants, such as on ' ...

, ''

My Word! ''My Word!'' is a British radio quiz panel game broadcast by the BBC on the Home Service (1956–67) and Radio 4 (1967–88). It was created by Edward J. Mason and Tony Shryane, and featured the humorous writers Frank Muir and Denis Norde ...

''. She herself was succeeded by Lady

Antonia Fraser Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser, (' Pakenham; born 27 August 1932) is a British author of history, novels, biographies and detective fiction. She is the widow of the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, Harold Pinter (1930–2008), and ...

in 1978. Her marriage to Macdonald Hastings ended in the early sixties, and she soon met the writer and illustrator

Osbert Lancaster Sir Osbert Lancaster, CBE (4 August 1908 – 27 July 1986) was an English cartoonist, architectural historian, stage designer and author. He was known for his cartoons in the British press, and for his lifelong work to inform the general p ...

. They were married from 1967 until his death in 1986. In the late 1960s, she left the world of journalism and embarked on a new stage in her career, gardening writing. Her books, ''The Pleasure Garden'' (jointly written with Lancaster), ''Down to Earth'', and ''

Sissinghurst Sissinghurst is a small village in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. Originally called ''Milkhouse Street'' (also referred to as ''Mylkehouse''), Sissinghurst changed its name in the 1850s, possibly to avoid association with the sm ...

: The Making of a Garden'', are regarded as classics of their genre. Scott-James died aged 96, and was survived by her son and daughter, and

stepson A stepchild is the offspring of one's spouse, but not one's own offspring, either biologically or through adoption. Stepchildren can come into a family in a variety of ways. A stepchild may be the child of one's spouse from a previous relationshi ...

and stepdaughter by Sir Osbert Lancaster.

Bibliography

*''In the Mink'' (1952) (novel) *''Down to Earth'' (1971) *''Sissinghurst: The Making of a Garden'' (1974) *''The Pleasure Garden: An Illustrated History of British Gardening '' (with Sir Osbert Lancaster) (1977) *''The Cottage Garden'' (1981) *''Glyndebourne: The Gardens'' (with

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

) (1983) *''Perfect Plant, Perfect Garden'' (1987) *''Gardening Letters to my Daughter'' (1991)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott-James, Anne 1913 births 2009 deaths British magazine editors British radio personalities British Vogue English garden writers People educated at St Paul's Girls' School Alumni of Somerville College, Oxford Writers from London People from the City of Westminster 20th-century English non-fiction writers 20th-century English novelists 20th-century English women writers English women novelists Daily Mail journalists English women non-fiction writers Women magazine editors Lancaster family 20th-century British journalists