Malcolm Muggeridge

Malcolm Muggeridge
Born	Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge (1903-03-24)24 March 1903 Sanderstead,Surrey,England
Died	14 November 1990(1990-11-14)(aged 87) Robertsbridge,East Sussex,England
Alma mater	Selwyn College, Cambridge
Occupations	Journalist author satirist
Spouse	Katherine Dobbs ​ (m.1927)​
Children	4
Relatives	H. T. Muggeridge(father)

Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge(24 March 1903 – 14 November 1990)was an English journalist and satirist. His father,H. T. Muggeridge,was a socialist politician and one of the earlyLabour PartyMembers of Parliament (forRomford,inEssex). Malcolm's brother Eric was one of the founders ofPlan International.In his twenties, Muggeridge was attracted tocommunismand went to live in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, and the experience turned him into ananti-communist.

DuringWorld War II,he worked for the British government as a soldier and a spy, first inEast Africafor two years and then inParis.In the aftermath of the war, he converted toChristianityunder the influence ofHugh Kingsmilland helped to bringMother Teresato popular attention in the West. He was a critic of thesexual revolutionand of drug use.

Muggeridge kept detailed diaries for much of his life, which were published in 1981 under the titleLike It Was: The Diaries of Malcolm Muggeridge,and he developed them into two volumes of an uncompleted autobiographyChronicles of Wasted Time.

Early life and career

Muggeridge's father, Henry (known asH. T. Muggeridge), served as aLabour Partycouncillorin the local government ofCroydon,South London,as a founder-member of theFabian Society,and as a Labour Member of Parliament forRomford(1929–1931) duringRamsay MacDonald's second Labour government. Muggeridge's biographerRichard Ingramsdescribed H.T. as "a small bearded man with a large frame, a twinkling eye, and a rather bulbous nose which he passed on to his son."Muggeridge's mother was Annie Booler.

The middle of five brothers, Muggeridge was born inSanderstead,Surrey.His first name, Thomas, was chosen by H.T. in honor of his heroThomas Carlyle.He grew up in Croydon and attendedSelhurst Grammar Schoolthere and thenSelwyn College, Cambridge,for four years. Still a student, he taught for brief periods in 1920, 1922 and 1924 at theJohn Ruskin Central School,Croydon, where his father was Chairman of the Governors. After graduating in 1924 with apass degreein natural sciences, he went toBritish Indiafor three years to teach English literature atUnion Christian College, Aluva,Kingdom of Cochin.His writing career began during his time in the Kingdom via an exchange of correspondence on war and peace withMahatma Gandhi,with Muggeridge's article on the interactions being published inYoung India,a local magazine.

Returning to Britain in 1927, he marriedKatherine "Kitty" Dobbs(1903–1994),the daughter of Rosalind Dobbs (a younger sister ofBeatrice Webb).He worked as a supply teacher before moving to teach English literature inEgyptsix months later. There he metArthur Ransome,who was visiting Egypt as a journalist for theManchester Guardian.Ransome recommended Muggeridge to the newspaper' editors, who offered him his first position in journalism.

Moscow

Initially attracted bycommunism,Muggeridge and his wife travelled to Moscow in 1932. He was to be a correspondent for theManchester Guardianstanding in forWilliam Henry Chamberlin,who was about to take a leave of absence. During Muggeridge's early time in Moscow he was completing a novel,Picture Palace,loosely based on his experiences and observations at theManchester Guardian.It was completed and submitted to publishers in January 1933, but there was concern by the publishers over potentiallibelclaims, and the published book was not distributed. Very few first-edition copies exist today. That setback caused considerable financial difficulties for Muggeridge, who was not employed and was paid only for articles that were accepted.

Increasingly disillusioned by his close observation of communism in practice, Muggeridge decided to investigate reports of thefamine in Ukraineby travelling there and to theCaucasuswithout first obtaining the permission of the Soviet authorities. The revealing reports that he sent back toThe Manchester Guardianin thediplomatic bag,thus evading censorship, were not fully printed, and those that were published (on 25, 27 and 28 March 1933) were not published under Muggeridge's name.Meanwhile, fellow journalistGareth Jones,who had met Muggeridge in Moscow, published his own stories. The two accounts helped to confirm the extent of a forced famine, which was politically motivated. Writing inThe New York TimesWalter Durantydenied the existence of any famine.Jones wrote letters to theManchester Guardianin support of Muggeridge's articles about the famine.

Having come into conflict with British newspapers' editorial policy of not provoking the authorities in the Soviet Union,Muggeridge returned to novel writing. He wroteWinter in Moscow(1934), which describes conditions in the "socialist utopia" and satirised Western journalists' uncritical view of the Soviet regime. He was later to call Duranty "the greatest liar I have met in journalism". Later, he began a writing partnership withHugh Kingsmill.Muggeridge's politics changed from an independent socialist point of view to a conservative religious stance. He wrote later:

I wrote in a mood of anger, which I find rather absurd now: not so much because the anger was, in itself, unjustified, as because getting angry about human affairs is as ridiculous as losing one's temper when an air flight is delayed.

— Muggeridge 1973,p. 274

Return to India

After his time in Moscow, Muggeridge worked on other newspapers, includingThe StatesmaninCalcutta,of which he was editor in 1934 to 1936. In his second stint in India, he lived by himself in Calcutta, having left behind his wife and children in London. Between 1930 and 1936, the Muggeridges had three sons and a daughter.His office was in the headquarters of the newspaper inChowringhee.

Second World War

Whenwarwas declared, Muggeridge went toMaidstoneto join up but was sent away: "My generation felt they'd missed theFirst War,now was the time tomake up."He was called into theMinistry of Information,which he called "a most appalling set-up", and joined the army as a private. He joined theCorps of Military Policeand was commissioned on theGeneral Listin May 1940.He transferred to theIntelligence Corpsas a lieutenant in June 1942.Having spent two years as a Regimental Intelligence Officer in Britain, he was by 1942 inMI6and had been posted toLourenço Marques,the capital ofMozambique,as a bogus vice-consul (called a Special Correspondent byLondon Controlling Section).Before heading out, Muggeridge stayed in Lisbon for some months, waiting for his visa to come through.He stayed inEstorilat the Pensão Royal on 17 May 1942.

His mission was to prevent information about Allied convoys off the coast of Africa falling into enemy hands.He wrote later that he also attempted suicide.After the Allied occupation ofNorth Africa,he was posted toAlgiersas liaison officer with the Frenchsécurité militaire.In that capacity, he was sent to Paris at the time of theliberationand worked alongsideCharles de Gaulle'sFree French Forces.He had a high regard for de Gaulle and considered him a greater man thanChurchill.He was warned to expect some anti-British feeling in Paris because of theattack on Mers-el-Kébir.In fact, Muggeridge, speaking on theBBCretrospective programmeMuggeridge: Ancient & Modern,said that he had encountered no such feeling and indeed had been allowed on occasion to eat and drink for nothing atMaxim's.He was assigned to make an initial investigation intoP. G. Wodehouse's five broadcasts from Berlin during the war. Though he was prepared to dislike Wodehouse, the interview became the start of a lifelong friendship and publishing relationship as well as the subject for several plays. He also interviewedCoco Chanelin Paris about the nature of her involvement with the Nazis inVichy Franceduring the war.Muggeridge ended the war as amajor,having received theCroix de Guerrefrom the French government for undisclosed reasons.

Later life

Muggeridge wrote for theEvening Standardand also forThe Daily Telegraphwhere he was appointed deputy editor in 1950. He kept detailed diaries, which provide a vivid picture of the journalistic and political London of the day, including regular contact withGeorge Orwell,Anthony Powell,Graham GreeneandBill Deedes;and he comments perceptively onIan Fleming,Guy BurgessandKim Philby.

When George Orwell died in 1950, Muggeridge and Anthony Powell organized Orwell's funeral.

Muggeridge also acted as Washington correspondent forThe Daily Telegraph.He was editor ofPunchmagazine from 1953 to 1957, a challenging appointment for one who claimed that "there is no occupation more wretched than trying to make the English laugh". One of his first acts was to sack the illustratorE. H. Shepard.In 1957, he received public and professional opprobrium for criticism of theBritish monarchyin a US magazine,The Saturday Evening Post.The article was given the title "Does England Really Need a Queen?", and its publication was delayed by five months to coincide with the Royal State Visit toWashington, DCtaking place later that year. It was little more than a rehash of views expressed in a 1955 article,Royal Soap Opera,but its timing caused outrage in the UK, and a contract withBeaverbrook Newspaperswas cancelled. His notoriety then propelled him into becoming better known as a broadcaster, with regular appearances on the BBC'sPanorama,and a reputation as a tough interviewer. Encounters withBrendan BehanandSalvador Dalícemented his reputation as a fearless critic of modern life.

Muggeridge was described as having predatory behaviour towards women during his BBC years.He was described as a "compulsive groper", reportedly being nicknamed "The Pouncer" and as "a man fully deserving of the acronym NSIT—not safe in taxis". His niece confirmed these reports, while also reflecting on the suffering inflicted on his family and saying that he changed his behaviour when he converted to Christianity in the 1960s.

In the early 1960s, Muggeridge became avegetarianso that he would be "free to denounce those horriblefactory farmswhere animals are raised for food ".

He took to frequently denouncing the new sexual laxity of theSwinging Sixtieson radio and television. He particularly railed against "pills and pot":birth controlpills andcannabis.

In contrast, he metthe Beatlesbefore they were famous: On 7 June 1961 he flew to Hamburg for an interview with theSternmagazine and afterwards went out on the town and ended up at theTop Ten Clubon theReeperbahn.In his diary, he described their performance as "bashing their instruments, and emitting nerveless sounds into microphones". However, they recognised him from the television and they entered into conversation. He acknowledged that "their faces [were] like Renaissance carvings of the saints or Blessed Virgins".

His book,Tread Softly for You Tread on My Jokes(1966), though acerbic in its wit, revealed a serious view of life. The title is an allusion to the last line of the poemAedh Wishes for the Cloths of HeavenbyWilliam Butler Yeats:"Tread softly because you tread on my dreams." In 1967, he preached atGreat St Mary's,Cambridge,and again in 1970.

Having been electedRectorofEdinburgh University,Muggeridge was goadedby the editor ofThe Student,Anna Coote, to support the call for contraceptive pills to be available at the University Health Centre. He used a sermon atSt Giles' Cathedralin January 1968 to resign the post to protest against theStudents' Representative Council's views on "pot and pills". The sermon was published under the title "Another King".

Muggeridge resigned as a judge for the 1971Booker Prizebecause of his "general lack of sympathy with entries for this year's Booker Prize" and was replaced on the panel byPhilip Toynbee.

Muggeridge was also known for his wit and profound writings often at odds with the opinions of the day. "Never forget that only dead fish swim with the stream", he liked to quote. He wrote two volumes of an autobiography calledChronicles of Wasted Time(the title is a quotationfromShakespeare's sonnet106). The first volume (1972) wasThe Green Stick.The second volume (1973) wasThe Infernal Grove.A projected third volume,The Right Eye,covering the postwar period, was never completed.

Conversion to Christianity

Agnosticfor most of his life, Muggeridge became a ProtestantChristian,publishingJesus Rediscoveredin 1969, a collection of essays, articles and sermons on faith, which became a best seller.Jesus: The Man Who Livesfollowed in 1976, which was a more substantial work describing the gospel in his own words. InA Third Testament,he profiles six spiritual thinkers, whom he called "God's Spies", who influenced his life:Augustine of Hippo,William Blake,Blaise Pascal,Leo Tolstoy,Dietrich Bonhoeffer,andSøren Kierkegaard.He also produced several BBC religious documentaries, includingIn the Footsteps of St. Paul.

Muggeridge became a leading figure in theNationwide Festival of Lightin 1971 protesting against the commercial exploitation of sex and violence in Britain and advocating the teaching of Christ as the key to recovering moral stability in the nation. He said at the time: "The media today—press, television, and radio—are largely in the hands of those who favour the presentGadareneslide into decadence and Godlessness. "

Criticism ofLife of Brian

In 1979, along withMervyn Stockwood,theBishop of Southwark,Muggeridge appeared on the chat showFriday Night, Saturday Morningto discuss the filmLife of Brianwith Monty Python membersJohn CleeseandMichael Palin.Although the Python members gave reasons that they believed the film to be neither anti-Christian nor mocking the person ofJesus,both Muggeridge and the bishop insisted that they were being disingenuous and that the film was anti-Christian andblasphemous.Muggeridge further declared their film to be "buffoonery", "tenth-rate", "this miserable little film" and "this little squalid number". Furthermore, Muggeridge stated that there was "nothing in this film that could possibly destroy anybody's genuine faith"; in saying this, the Pythons were quick to point out the futility of criticising it so vitriolically since Muggeridge did not think it was significant enough to affect anyone. According to Palin, Muggeridge arrived late and so missing the two scenes in which Jesus and Brian were distinguished as different people. The discussion was moderated byTim Rice,the lyricist for the musicalJesus Christ Superstar,which had also generated some controversy in Britain about a decade earlier over its depiction of Jesus.

The comedians later expressed disappointment in Muggeridge, whom all inMonty Pythonhad previously respected as a satirist. Cleese said that his reputation had "plummeted" in his eyes, and Palin commented, "He was just being Muggeridge, preferring to have a very strong contrary opinion as opposed to none at all".

Later years

In 1982, at 79, Muggeridge was received into theCatholic Churchafter he had rejected Anglicanism,like his wife, Kitty. This was largely under the influence ofMother Teresaabout whom he had written a book,Something Beautiful for God,setting out and interpreting her life.His last book,Conversion(1988), describes his life as a 20th century pilgrimage, a spiritual journey.

Muggeridge died on 14 December 1990 in a nursing home inHastings,England, at the age of 87. He had suffered a stroke three years earlier.

Legacy

An eponymousliterary societywas established on 24 March 2003, the occasion of his centenary, and it publishes a quarterly newsletter,The Gargoyle.The Malcolm Muggeridge Society, based in Britain, is progressively republishing his works. Muggeridge's papers are in the Special Collections atWheaton College,Illinois,US.

In November 2008, on the 75th anniversary of the Ukraine famine, both Muggeridge andGareth Joneswere posthumously awarded the Ukrainian Order of Merit III Degree to mark their exceptional services to the country and its people.

In an interview on theEric MetaxasRadio Show, notable Christian apologistRavi Zachariasidentified Malcolm Muggeridge andG. K. Chestertonas two important influencers in his life.

A week following Muggeridge's death,William F. Buckleywrote a tribute published inThe Washington Post.Buckley, in an interview onC-SPAN,described Muggeridge as "a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful man, a great wit and a brilliant, brilliant analyst."

Works

Books

• Three Flats: A Play in Three Acts(1931)
• Winter in Moscow(1934)ISBN080280263X
• Picture Palace(1934, 1987)ISBN0-297-79039-0
• La Russie.Vue par Malcolme [sic] Muggeridge. Paris, Imprimerie Pascal, N.d.(c. 1934) 14pp.
• The Earnest Atheist: A Study ofSamuel Butler,London: Eyre & Spottiswoode (1936)
• In a Valley of This Restless Mind(1938) Reprinted in 1978 with introduction by Muggeridge and illustrations by PapasISBN0-00-216337-3
• The Thirties, 1930–1940, in Great Britain(1940, 1989)ISBN0-297-79570-8
• Ciano, Count Galeazzo.Ciano's Diary, 1939–1943(1947). Edited with in introduction by Muggeridge
• Affairs of the Heart(1949)
• Bentley, Nicholas (1957).How Can you Bear to be Human?.London: Andre Deutsch.Muggeridge wrote the introduction.
• Tread Softly for You Tread on My Jokes(1966). Collection of essays
• Jesus Rediscovered(1969)ISBN0-00-621939-X
• Muggeridge Through the Microphone: BBC Radio and Television(1969). Broadcasts
• Something Beautiful for God(1971)ISBN0-00-215769-1Muggeridge introducedMother Teresato the world with this book
• Paul, Envoy Extraordinary(1972) withAlec Vidler,ISBN0-00-215644-X
• Chronicles of Wasted Time.Vol. 1: The Green Stick. New York: Morrow. 1973.ISBN0688-00191-2.OCLC283705853.OL24203423M.London: Collins, 1972
• Chronicles of Wasted Time.Vol. 2: The Infernal Grove. New York: Morrow. 1974.ISBN0688-00300-1.London, Collins, 1973
• Jesus: The Man Who Lives(1975)ISBN0-00-211388-0
• A Third Testament: A Modern Pilgrim Explores the Spiritual Wanderings of Augustine, Blake, Pascal, Tolstoy, Bonhoeffer, Kierkegaard, and Dostoevsky.Little, Brown. 1976.
• Christ and the Media(1977)ISBN0-340-22438-X
• Hesketh Pearson.The Smith of Smiths: Being the Life, Wit and Humour ofSydney Smith(Folio Society, 1977). New introduction by Muggeridge; book first published 1934.
• Things Past(1979)
• The End of Christendom(1980)ISBN0-8028-1837-4
• Like it Was: The Diaries of Malcolm Muggeridge(1981)ISBN0-00-216468-X
• My Life in Pictures.London: Herbert Press. 1987.ISBN0906969603.OL2473679M.
• Conversion: The Spiritual Journey of a Twentieth Century Pilgrim(1988, 2005)ISBN1-59752-101-9

Sermons and lectures

• Ultimate Concern: 'Am I a Christian?',etc., Cambridge (1967)
• Living Water,Aberdeen (1968)ISBN0-7152-0016-X
• Another King,St Andrews Press (1968)
• Still I Believe: Nine Talks Broadcast during Lent and Holy Week(1969),ISBN0-563-08552-5
• Light in our Darkness,Edinburgh (1969)ISBN0-7152-0069-0
• Fundamental Questions: What is Life About?,Cambridge (1970)
• The Authority and Relevance of the Bible in the Modern World(Bible Society of Australia, 1976)
• "America Needs a Punch,"Esquire(April 1958), 59–60, 60

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	I'm All Right Jack	T.V. Panel Chairman
1963	Heavens Above!	Cleric
1966	"Alice_in_Wonderland_(1966_TV_play)"	Gryphon
1967	Herostratus	Radio Presenter	Voice

See also

• Samuel Butler– the subject of Muggeridge's 1936 study.
• The 2011television filmHoly Flying Circus,broadcast onBBC Fourin October 2011, which features a fictional account of Muggeridge and the Pythons' debate on the above programme.
• Beside the Seaside,1934 –BournemouthContains commissioned article about this seaside resort

References

Sources

• Buckley, William F. (24 November 1990)."Malcolm Muggeridge and the Longing for Faith".The Washington Post.Retrieved23 October2019.
• Burros, Marian(13 October 1982)."In Defense of Vegetarianism: Seven Yeas".The New York Times.Retrieved10 July2017.
• Holt, Thadeus (2007).The Deceivers: Allied Military Deception in the Second World War.New York: Skyhorse.
• Farmer, Ben (24 February 2015)."Malcolm Muggeridge was a serial groper who 'caused much hurt to those close to him', niece admits".The Daily Telegraph.London.
• Flynn, Nicholas (20 June 1994)."Kitty Muggeridge".The Independent.Retrieved23 October2019.
• Haseler, Stephen (1993).The End of the House of Windsor: Birth of a British Republic.Bloomsbury Academic.ISBN978-1-85043-735-2.
• Krebs, Albin (15 November 1990)."Malcolm Muggeridge, Writer, Dies at 87".The New York Times.p. B19.Retrieved20 August2017.
• Rees, Nigel(1980).The Quote... Unquote Book of Love, Death and the Universe.Allen & Unwin.ISBN0-04-827022-9.OL4115340M.
• Seaton, Jean (2015).Pinkoes and Traitors: The BBC and the nation, 1974–1987.Profile Books.ISBN978-1-84765-916-3.

Further reading

• Ingrams, Richard,Muggeridge: The Biography,London: HarperCollins, 1995.ISBN0-00-638467-6
• Wolfe, Gregory,Malcolm Muggeridge: A Biography,London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1995.ISBN0-340-60674-6
• Hunter, Ian,Malcolm Muggeridge: A Life,London: Collins, 1980.ISBN0-241-12048-9
• Muggeridge, Ancient & Modern/ edited by Christopher Ralling and Jane Bywaters; with drawings by Trog, London,BBC,1981.ISBN0-563-17905-8.This is a revised edition ofMuggeridge Through the Microphone(1967).
• Porter, David,A Disciple of Christ: conversations with Malcolm Muggeridge,Basingstoke: Marshalls, 1983.ISBN0-551-01059-2
• Malcolm Muggeridge's Conversion Story
• McCrum, Robert,Wodehouse, A Life,London, New York: W. W. Norton, 2004.
• Kuhne, Cecil,Malcolm Muggeridge on Faith,San Francisco, CA: Ignatius Press, 2006.ISBN978-1-58617-068-4
• Flynn, Nicholas,Time and Eternity: Uncollected Writings 1933–1983,Darton, Longman and Todd, 2010.ISBN978-0-232-52808-4
• Aeschliman, M.D., "Malcolm Muggeridge, Marked by Mobility and a Search for Morality"https:// nationalreview /2020/10/malcolm-muggeridge-marked-by-mobility-and-a-search-for-morality/

External links

• Official website
• Interviews of Malcolm MuggeridgebyWilliam F. Buckleyon Buckley'sFiring Lineprogram.
• InterviewbyMike Wallace,19 October 1957
• Memories of MuggeridgebyRavi Zacharias
• Malcolm Muggeridge Papers, 1920–1990,Wheaton College Archives & Special Collections.