Sir John Betjeman

Sir John Betjeman, who became Poet Laureate in 1972, was well known through his appearances on television, and his love of traditional architecture and churches.

He was born in London in 1906. From early childhood, he spent holidays at Trebetherick in Cornwall and there made friends with the Headmaster of Dragon School, Oxford. As a consequence of this friendship, he went to board at The Dragon School from 1917 to 1920. Following this, he went to Marlborough College and in 1925 he became a student at Magdalen College, Oxford.

 

Betjeman's interest in churches and architecture was kindled at the Dragon School, but he had been interested in poetry from an early age. At Magdalen, he was part of the 'literary set' and after Oxford he was determined not to join his father's business in 'trade' but to carve out a literary career instead. In October 1930, he started working for the Architectural Review and in 1933 also, briefly, became a film critic on the Evening Standard. Betjeman married Penelope Chetwode and subsequently rented Garrards Farm when they moved to Uffington in February, 1934. The Betjemans soon became immersed in village life. John become People's Warden at The Church and Penelope directed plays and become involved in the Women's Institute. They entertained many famous friends at Uffington. Their son, Paul, was born in Uffington in 1937.

Garrards Farm, Uffington, the chalk-built cottage where the Betjemans lived during the 1930s.

John Betjeman travelled up to London by train, either from Uffington Station or Challow Road Station. In January 1935 he left the Architectural Review and started working with Shell to produce the Shell Guides. Around this time began an association with the BBC which was to continue until his death in 1984.

At the outbreak of war in September 1939, he joined the Uffington Observer Corps, whilst Penelope served in the Downs Patrol Division. Between 1941 and 1943 he became the Press Attache to the British Ambassador in Ireland and the family moved to Ireland, returning to Uffington in 1943. Candida Betjeman was born in Ireland in 1942.

The Betjemans returned to Uffington in the Autumn of 1943 and John resumed his job with the Ministry of Information. He also began writing book reviews for the Daily Herald and began regularly to broadcast for the BBC. In 1944 he joined the British Council.

In 1945, John Wheeler, the landlord of Garrards Farm, decided he wanted the farm for his son and the Betjemans moved to the Old Rectory at Farnborough (Berkshire), a large house set on the downs near Wantage. Although smaller than Uffington, it provided the same type of village life: the church, bell ringing and village socials. John Betjeman's book 'Archie and the Strict Baptist' recounts the move from Uffington to Farnborough.

In 1951, the Betjemans moved from Farnborough to The Mead in Wantage. In order to supplement their income, Penelope opened The Mead Waterfowl Farm and King Alfred's Kitchen, a tea shop which became popular with Oxford undergraduates.

In the mid 1950s John Betjeman divided his time between Wantage and Cloth Fair in London. He became known as "a teddy bear to the nation": a lovable, avuncular, crumpled figure whom millions welcomed into their homes via the television screen. He campaigned to save Victorian architecture and buildings, for example, St. Pancras Station and the "first garden suburb" of Bedford Park.

From the middle of the 1970s, he suffered increasingly from the onset of Parkinson's Disease and had a number of strokes. His last public appearance was made when he named a train the 'Sir John Betjeman' at St. Pancras Station.

Sir John Betjeman died at Trebetherick on 19 May, 1984.

For more information about his life and works, we recommend a visit to www.johnbetjeman.com