Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley
(James) Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley GBE (7 May 1883 – 6 February 1968), was a Welsh newspaper publisher.
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[edit] Background
Berry was born the son of John Mathias and Mary Ann (née Rowe) Berry, of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. He was the younger brother of Henry Berry, 1st Baron Buckland, an industrialist, and William Berry, 1st Viscount Camrose, a fellow press lord.
[edit] Career
Berry originally co-owned The Daily Telegraph with his second brother Lord Camrose, and Lord Burnham. He founded Kemsley Newspapers, which owned The Sunday Times, The Daily Sketch and The Sunday Graphic amongst its titles. He was created a baronet in 1928,[1] and was appointed as an Officer of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem in 1931.[2] In 1936, he was created Baron Kemsley, of Farnham Royal in the County of Buckingham,[3] and raised to Viscount Kemsley, of Dropmore in the County of Buckingham, in 1945.[4] In 1929 he was appointed High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire[5] and in 1959, a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GCB) for "political and public service".[6]
[edit] Family
Lord Kemsley married twice: firstly in 1907 to Mary Lilian Holmes, daughter of Horace George Holmes, with whom he had six sons and a daughter, and secondly Edith Merandon du Plessis, daughter of E. N. Merandon du Plessis. He was succeeded upon his death by his eldest son Lionel. His youngest son, Conservative politician the Honourable Sir Anthony Berry, was killed by the IRA in the 1984 Brighton hotel bombing.
[edit] References
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 33343. p. 1. 30 December 1927. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 33728. p. 4072. 23 June 1931. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 34252. p. 730. 3 February 1936. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 37267. p. 4587. 14 September 1945. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- ^ London Gazette: no. 33479. p. 1965. 22 March 1929. Retrieved 2011-03-06.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 41589. p. 10. 30 December 1958. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- Smith, Adrian (September 2004). "Berry, (James) Gomer, first Viscount Kemsley (1883–1968)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/30731. Retrieved 2008-12-10. subscription or UK public library membership required
[edit] Works
As owner of Kemsley Newspapers, Viscount Kemsley made several written contibutions to his in-house journal The Kemsley Writer. Kemsley also oversaw the publication of the large format hardcover book The Kemsley Manual of Journalism (Cassell, 1950). Sub-titled A Comprehensive Guide to the Practice and Principles of Modern Journalism, this featured an introduction by Kemsley and an essay from his Foreign Manager Ian Fleming, later the author of the James Bond novels.
[edit] External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Viscount Camrose
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| New creation | Viscount Kemsley 1945–1968 |
Succeeded by Geoffrey Lionel Berry |
| New creation | Baron Kemsley 1936–1968 |
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| Baronetage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Baronet 1928–1968 |
Succeeded by Geoffrey Lionel Berry |
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This Welsh biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1883 births
- 1968 deaths
- People from Merthyr Tydfil
- British newspaper publishers (people)
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
- Viscounts in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
- Welsh businesspeople
- Welsh journalists
- Sub-Prelates of the Order of St John
- High Sheriffs of Buckinghamshire
- Welsh people stubs
