S. P. B. Mais
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Stuart Petre Brodie Mais (July 4, 1885 – April 21, 1975), was a prolific British author, journalist and broadcaster. The son of a Bristolian rector, he was born in Birmingham but raised in Tansley, Derbyshire, where his family moved shortly afterwards. After graduating in English Literature at Christ Church, Oxford, and then teaching at a number of schools including Rossall and Sherborne, Mais later worked for National Press at Fleet Street. He was a prolific author writing over 200 books, his reputation was such that Churchill once joked that the speed of his output made him feel tired .
Mais broadcast for numerous wireless programmes for the BBC between the 1920’s and 1940’s. He was married twice to Doris Snow and then to Jill Doughty. S.P.B (who preferred to be called Petre), was an ardent campaigner for the English countryside and traditions, he was also broad minded and innovative. He began to broadcast a "Letter From America" in 1933, a ground breaking venture at the time, and an idea that has been used by other media figures since. S.P.B. died at in April 1975 at Lindfield, Sussex.
[edit] Further reading
- Bernard Smith, ‘Mais, Stuart Petre Brodie (1885–1975)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 (http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/46344, accessed 18 Jan 2007)
- Robson, Maisie, "An Unrepentant Englishman: The Life of S. P. B. Mais, Ambassador of the Countryside" King's England Press, 2005. (http://www.kingsengland.com/mais.htm)
