Kevin Jackson (writer)
Kevin Jackson | |
|---|---|
 Kevin Jackson by Marzena Pogorzaly | |
| Born | 3 January 1955 London, England |
| Died | 10 May 2021 (aged 66) |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | British |
| Period | 1979–2021 |
| Genre | Criticism, biography, cultural history |
| Notable works | The Language of Cinema (1998) Humphrey Jennings (2004) Withnail & I (BFI Modern Classics) (2008) Invisible Forms: A Guide to Literary Curiosities (2000) |
Kevin Jackson (3 January 1955 – 10 May 2021) was an English writer, broadcaster, filmmaker and pataphysician.
He was educated at the Emanuel School,[1] Battersea, and Pembroke College, Cambridge. After teaching in the English Department of Vanderbilt University, Nashville, he joined the BBC, first as a producer in radio and then as a director of short documentaries for television. In 1987 he was recruited to the Arts pages of The Independent.[2] He was a freelance writer since the early 1990s[3] and was a regular contributor to BBC radio programmes,[4] including Radio 4's Saturday Review.[5]
Jackson often collaborated on projects with, among others, the film-maker Kevin Macdonald, with whom he co-produced a Channel 4 documentary on Humphrey Jennings, The Man Who Listened to Britain (2000); with the cartoonist Hunt Emerson, on comic strips about the history of Western occultism for Fortean Times, on two comics inspired by John Ruskin (published by the Ruskin Foundation)[6] and on a book-length version of Dante's Inferno (Knockabout Books, 2012); with the musician and composer Colin Minchin (lyrics for various songs, and the rock opera Bite, first staged in West London, October 2011); and with the songwriter Peter Blegvad (short surreal plays for BBC Radio 3 – eartoons). Jackson also conducted a long biographical interview with Blegvad, published by Atlas Press in September 2011 as The Bleaching Stream.[7] Jackson appears, under his own name, as a semi-fictional character in Iain Sinclair's account of a pedestrian journey around the M25, London Orbital.[8] Worple Press published Jackson's book of interviews with Sinclair, The Verbals in 2002.[9]
He was among the founder members of the London Institute of 'Pataphysics,[10] and held the Ordre de la Grande Gidouille from the College de Pataphysique in Paris. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Companion of the Guild of St George. From 2009–2011 he was visiting professor in English at University College London.
Jackson died on 10 May 2021, at the age of 66.[11]
Select bibliography
[edit]As author
[edit]- The Language of Cinema, published by Routledge Press 1998 (ISBN 978-1857542325)
- Invisible Forms: A Guide to Literary Curiosities, published by St Martin's Press 2000 (ISBN 978-0330371155)
- Building the Great Pyramid, Published by Firefly Books 2003 (ISBN 978-1552977217)
- Letters of Introduction, Published by Carcanet Press Ltd 2004 (ISBN 978-1857546552)
- Humphrey Jennings, Published by Picador Press 2004 (ISBN 978-0330354387)
- A Ruskin Alphabet, Published by Worple Press 2000 (ISBN 978-0953094721)
- Withnail & I (BFI Modern Classics), 2008 (ISBN 978-1844570355)
- Lawrence of Arabia (BFI Modern Classics), 2007 (ISBN 978-1844571789)
- Fast, 2006 (ISBN 978-1846270291)
- Moose, Published by Reaktion Books 2009 (ISBN 978-1861893963)
- Bite: A Vampire Handbook, Published by Portobello Books Ltd 2010 (ISBN 978-1846272110)
- The Pataphysical Flook, 2007 (ISBN 1-900565-33-1)
- The Worlds of John Ruskin, Published by Pallas Athene Arts 2009 (ISBN 978-1843680444)
- Chronicles of Old London, Published by Museyon Guides 2012 (ISBN 978-0984633432)
- Constellation of Genius, Published by Hutchinson Press 2012 (ISBN 978-0091930974)
- Nosferatu (1922): eine Symphonie des Grauens (BFI Film Classics), published by British Film Institute 2013 (ISBN 978-1844576500)
- Carnal, published by Pallas Athene Arts 2015 (ISBN 978-1843681113)
- Mayflower: The Voyage from Hell published by TSB | Can of Worms, 2020 (ISBN 9781916190870[12])
- Darwin’s Odyssey: The Voyage of the Beagle published by TSB | Can of Worms, 2020 (ISBN 9781916190887[13])
- The Queen’s Pirate: Sir Francis Drake and the Golden Hind published by TSB | Can of Worms, 2019 (ISBN 9781916190894[14])
- Nelson’s Victory: Trafalgar and Tragedy published by TSB | Can of Worms, 2021 (ISBN 9781911673064[15])
As editor
[edit]- Schrader on Schrader, 2004 (ISBN 978-0571221769)
- The Humphrey Jennings Film Reader, Published by Carcanet Press 2005 (ISBN 978-1857540451)
- The Oxford Book of Money, 1995 (ISBN 978-0192142009)
- The Risk of Being Alive. Dylan Francis (ISBN 0-904274-02-0)
- The Anatomy of Melancholy. (Robert Burton), 2004 (ISBN 978-1857546507)
- Revolutionary Sonnets and Other Poems (Anthony Burgess), 2003 (ISBN 978-1857546163)
- The Book of Hours, 2007 (ISBN 978-0715636084)
- Aussie Dans Le Metro: A Festschrift for John Baxter (privately published: Alces Press, 2009),
As co-editor
[edit]- Pataphysics: Definitions and Citations. (with Alastair Brotchie, Stanley Chapman and Thieri Foulc), 2003 (ISBN 1-900565-08-0)
Filmography
[edit]Shorts
[edit]- Bite: Diary of a Vampire Housewife, 2009
- Bite: Pavane for a Vampire Queen, 2011
- No More a-Roving (Vampire Mix), 2011
- Exquisite Corpse (from the novel by Robert Irwin), 2011
- The Last of the Vostyachs (from the novel by Diego Marani), 2012
- Constellation of Genius, 2012
- Dracbeth, 2014
- Carnal to the Point of Scandal, 2015
References
[edit]- ^ List of Old Emanuels#Literature
- ^ "Carcanet Press Author Biography". Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ Sinclair, Iain. London Orbital. pp. 204–205.
- ^ "TV & Radio Sites". BBC. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "Saturday Review Programmes". Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ "Comic book highlights Ruskinian views". The Independent. London. 29 November 2005.
- ^ "The Journal of the London Institute of 'Pataphysics". Retrieved 10 October 2012.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Nicholas Lezard (21 September 2002). "Meandering round the M25". The Guardian.
- ^ Jackson, Kevin; Sinclair, Iain (2003). The Verbals: Iain Sinclair in conversation with Kevin Jackson. Worple. ISBN 9780953094790. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
- ^ Interview with Kevin Jackson at Ready, Steady, Book
- ^ Carlson, Michael (13 May 2021). "Kevin Jackson and Modernism: Constellations of Genius". Carlson Sports.
- ^ Jackson, Kevin (2020). Mayflower : the voyage from hell. London. ISBN 978-1-9161908-7-0. OCLC 1235904484.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Kevin, Jackson (2020). Darwin's Odyssey: The Voyage of the Beagle. Can of Worms. ISBN 9781916190887.
- ^ Kevin, Jackson (2020). The Queen's Pirate: Sir Francis Drake and the Golden Hind. Can of Worms. ISBN 9781916190894.
- ^ Kevin, Jackson (2021). Nelson's Victory: Trafalgar and Tragedy. Can of Worms. ISBN 9781911673064.
Reviews
[edit]- Self, Will (19 October 2012). "Constellation of Genius, 1922: Modernism Year One by Kevin Jackson – review". Guardian.
- Laity, Paul (3 March 2005). "Humphrey Jennings". London Review of Books. 27 (5): 18–20.
- Blincoe, Nicholas (11 April 2004). "Letters of Introduction". Daily Telegraph.
- Mullan, John (11 April 2004). "Letters of Introduction". Guardian.
- French, Philip (20 January 2008). "Lawrence of Arabia". Observer.
- Carrier, Dan (28 January 2010). "The Worlds of John Ruskin". Camden New Journal.
- O'Brien, Murray (22 February 2009). "Moose". Independent on Sunday.
- Lacey, Josh (28 March 2009). "Moose". Guardian.
- Preston, John (21 October 2009). "Bite". Spectator.
- Hirst, Christopher (29 October 2009). "Bite". Independent.
- Poole, Stephen (27 March 2004). "Bite". Guardian.
- Biswell, Andrew (25 January 2003). "Bite". Guardian.
External links
[edit]- The London Institute of 'Pataphysics
- The Worple Press
- Carcanet Press
- The Final Journey of a Working Writer, by Kevin Jackson in the Independent
- A Polymath's Polymath: A Conversation with Kevin Jackson
- Author Bio at Portobello Books
- "Modernism with Ali Smith and Kevin Jackson". Start the Week, BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
