Humphrey William Bouverie Carpenter (April 29, 1946 – January 4, 2005) was an English biographer, author and radio broadcaster. He was born, died, and lived practically all of his life, in the city of Oxford. As a child he lived in the Warden's Lodgings at Keble College, Oxford, where his father, Harry James Carpenter, was Warden until his appointment as Bishop of Oxford. On leaving the Dragon School in Oxford, Humphrey was educated at Marlborough College in Wiltshire, but returned to study English at Keble. April 29 is the 119th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (120th in leap years). ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... January 4 is the 4th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... This is an article on biographies. ... An author is the person who creates a written work, such as a book, story, article or the like. ... Note: broadcasting is also the old term for hand sowing. ... Oxford is a city and local government district in Oxfordshire, England, with a population of 134,248 (2001 census). ... College name Keble College Collegium Keblense Named after John Keble Established 1870 Sister College Selwyn College Warden Professor Dame Averil Cameron DBE FBA JCR President Paul Dwyer Undergraduates 435 MCR President Tom Robinson Graduates 219 Homepage Boatclub Keble College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford... The Rt Revd Harry James Carpenter (1901–1993) was an English theologian and clergyman. ... The Bishop of Oxford is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury. ... Dragon School logo School House at the Dragon School, on Bardwell Road. ... Marlborough College is a British boarding school in the county of Wiltshire, founded in 1843 for the education of the sons of Church of England clergy, although it now accepts both boys and girls of all beliefs. ... Wiltshire (abbreviated Wilts) is a large southern English county. ...

His large output of books includes biographies of J. R. R. Tolkien (1977) (also editor of The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien), W. H. Auden (1981), Ezra Pound (1988), Evelyn Waugh (1989), Benjamin Britten (1992), Robert Runcie (1997), and Spike Milligan (2004). John Ronald Reuel Tolkien CBE (3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English philologist, writer and university professor who is best known as the author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, as well as many other works. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... ... The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien (ISBN 0-618-05699-8) is a selection of J. R. R. Tolkiens letters published in 1981, edited by his son Christopher Tolkien and the biographer Humphrey Carpenter. ... hello i am w. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ezra Pound in 1913. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Evelyn Waugh, as photographed in 1940 by Carl Van Vechten Arthur Evelyn St. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH (November 22, 1913 Lowestoft, Suffolk - December 4, 1976 Aldeburgh, Suffolk) was a British composer, conductor, and pianist. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... Grave of Lord Runcie at St Albans Cathedral Robert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie (October 2, 1921 – July 11, 2000) was the 102nd Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Terence Alan Milligan, KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was a writer, artist, musician, humanitarian and comedian. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

He also wrote histories of BBC Radio 3 (on which he was a regular broadcaster), the British satire boom of the 1960s, Angry Young Men: A Literary Comedy of the 1950s (2002) and a centennial history of the Oxford University Dramatic Society in 1985. His Mr Majeika series of children's books enjoyed considerable popularity and were successfully adapted for television. His encyclopedic work The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature (1984), written jointly with his wife Mari Prichard, has become a standard reference source. BBC Radio 3 is a domestic UK BBC radio station, which devotes most of its schedule to classical music. ... 1867 edition of the satirical magazine Punch, a British satirical magazine, ground-breaking on popular literature satire. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... The Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS) is the leading student dramatic society at Oxford University, often staging plays at The Playhouse in Oxford. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

A distinguished broadcaster, he began his career at BBC Radio Oxford as a presenter and producer before moving to national radio. He played a vital role in launching Radio 3's ongoing arts discussion programme Night Waves and was a regular presenter of other programmes on the network including Radio 3's afternoon drivetime programme In Tune and, until it was discontinued, its Sunday request programme Listeners' Choice. Until he died he was the presenter of the BBC Radio 4 biography series Great Lives recorded in Bristol. The last edition recorded before his death featured an interview with the singer Eddi Reader about her selected life, Robert Burns. The programme was transmitted on New Year's Eve 2004. BBC Radio Oxford is a BBC Local Radio station, which opened on October 29, 1970. ... Charlotte Burton Edward Coxen In Tune was a 1914 American silent short film directed by Henry Otto starring Charlotte Burton, Edward Coxen, George Field, and Winifred Greenwood. ... BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station which broadcasts a wide variety of chiefly spoken-word programmes including news, drama, comedy, science and history. ... Great Lives is BBC Radio 4s biography series. ... Bristol (IPA: ) is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, 115 miles (185 km) west of London and between the cities of Bath, Gloucester and the borough of Swindon. ... Eddi Reader is a Scottish singer, known both for her work with Fairground Attraction and for her solo career. ... Robert Burns (January 25, 1759 – July 21, 1796) was a poet and a lyricist. ...

In 1983, he formed a 1930s style jazz band, Vile Bodies, which for many years enjoyed a residency at the Ritz Hotel in London. 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A jazz band is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. ... For other uses, see Ritz (disambiguation). ... London (pronounced ) is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom. ...

He also founded the Mushy Pea Theatre Group, a children's drama group based in Oxford, which premiered his Mr Majeika: The Musical in 1991 and Babes, a musical about Hollywood child stars.

Carpenter was a talented amateur jazz musician and an accomplished player of the piano, the saxophone and the double-bass, playing the last instrument professionally in a dance band in the 1970s. Jazz is a musical art form that originated in New Orleans at around the start of the 20th century. ... A musician is a person who plays or composes music. ... A grand piano, with the lid up. ... Saxophones of different sizes play in different registers. ... The double bass is the largest and lowest pitched bowed string instrument used in the modern symphony orchestra. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ...

His early death was the result of heart failure, compounded by the Parkinson's disease from which he had suffered for several years.

External links

• A perceptive biographer and engaging broadcaster, The Guardian, 5 January 2005
• Gently mischievous broadcaster and prolific writer, The Times, 6 January 2005
• Tributes Paid to Humphrey Carpenter BBC Radio