Edward Roffe Thompson Explained

Edward Roffe Thompson, who wrote as E.T. Raymond or Edward Raymond Thompson, (27 December 1891 – 13 October 1973) was an English author and journalist. He was the editor of John Bull magazine and wrote a number of biographies of British political figures and celebrities. He wrote an early self-help book, The Human Machine: Secrets of Success (1925).

Early life

Edward Thompson was born in Settle, Yorkshire, on 27 December 1891, the son of Edward Charles Thompson, a foreman store keeper.^[1] He received his higher education at the Victoria University of Manchester.

He married Caroline Alice (C. A.) Lejeune (1897–1973), a film reviewer for The Observer, in Chelsea in 1925^[2] and they settled in Pinner Hill in Middlesex where they built a house on open fields. They had a son, the writer and broadcaster Anthony Lejeune (1928–2018).^[3] Edward was usually known as Roffe rather than Edward in private life.^[4]

Career

Thompson wrote for and was the editor of John Bull magazine in succession to Horatio Bottomley.^{[5] [6]} He produced a number of biographies of British political figures and celebrities, and an early self-help book, The Human Machine: Secrets of Success (1925).

Death

Thompson died in Harrow, Middlesex, on 13 October 1973.^[1] His residence at the time of his death was Lane End, Hillside Road, Pinner. He left an estate of £32,735.^[7]

Selected publications

• Uncensored Celebrities. T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1918.
• All & Sundry. T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1919.
• Mr Balfour: A Biography. Collins, London, 1920.
• Portraits of the Nineties. T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1921.
• Mr. Lloyd George: A Biography. W. Collins, 1922.
• The Man of Promise: Lord Rosebery: A Critical Study. London, c. 1923.
• Disraeli: The Alien Patriot. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1925.
• The Human Machine: Secrets of Success. Mills & Boon, London, 1925.
• Portraits of the New Century: (The first ten years). Ernest Benn, London, 1928.
• Life's Secrets. The Human Machine. Second Series. Peppercorn Press, London, 1931.

External links

• Online Books by E. T. Raymond.

Notes and References

1. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVC5-DQ1Y Edward Roffe Thompson England and Wales Death Registration Index 1837-2007.
2. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVZR-SRRM Caroline A Lejeune England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005.
3. News: Anthony Lejeune. The Times. 6 March 2018. 7 April 2019.
4. Lejeune, C. A. (1971) Thank You for Having Me. London: Tom Stacey; p. 114
5. McCracken, Donal P. "Broadcasting to the 'last outpost of the British Empire': Anthony Lejeune, the man behind the SABC's English Service London Letter (1965–1995)" in Book: Ruth Teer-Tomaselli & Donal P. McCracken (Eds.). Media and the Empire. 2016. Routledge. Abingdon. 978-1-317-29149-7. 33–47.
6. Book: St John, Ian.. The Historiography of Gladstone and Disraeli. 2016. Anthem Press. London. 978-1-78308-530-9. 310.
7. https://probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar/GetImgSrc?filePath=%2F1973%2FT%2F008665_thompson_1973.Png 1973 Probate Calendar.