Tim Radford
Tim Radford | |
|---|---|
 Radford in 2012 | |
| Born | Timothy Robin Radford 9 October 1940 Rawene, New Zealand |
| Died | 10 February 2025 (aged 84) |
| Education | Sacred Heart College, Auckland |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist and writer |
| Notable credit(s) | Science editor at The Guardian, 1980–2005 |
| Spouse |
Maureen Coveney
(m. 1964; died 2024) |
| Children | 2 |
Timothy Robin Radford (9 October 1940 – 10 February 2025) was a British journalist who was the science editor for The Guardian newspaper from 1980 to 2005.
Early life
[edit]Timothy Robin Radford was born in Rawene, New Zealand, on 9 October 1940, and grew up in Devonport, near Auckland.[1] He was educated at Sacred Heart College, Auckland.[1][2] At 16, he joined The New Zealand Herald as a reporter. He moved to the United Kingdom in 1961, where he worked for Fishing News, followed by jobs on local newspapers.[3] He then had a stint as a civil servant, working at first as a Whitehall information officer,[1] and subsequently working in journalism, notably for The Guardian newspaper, as well as being a contributor to other publications including The Lancet, New Scientist and The London Review of Books.[4]
Career
[edit]Radford worked for The Guardian for 32 years. Over the course of his career, he was letters editor, arts editor, literary editor, and science editor — holding the last post from 1980 until 2005.[5] Radford became increasingly interested in climate change and wrote his first book The Crisis of Life on Earth in 1990.[3] He also served on the UK committee for the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.
In 2011 he co-founded the Climate News Network website.[3]
Personal life and death
[edit]In 1964, Radford married Maureen Coveney. They had two children, William and Stella, and were married until Maureen's death in 2024.[1][3]
Radford died on 10 February 2025, in Eastbourne, UK at the age of 84.[1][3]
Awards
[edit]Radford won four Association of British Science Writers awards:[6]
- Lifetime achievement award for services to science journalism, 2004
- Best feature on science subject in a national or regional newspaper, 2004, for Touching the Void, published in The Guardian on 22 July 2004
- Best communication of science in a non-science context, 2001, for Tell us, Solly, published in the London Review of Books on 20 September 2001
- Other awards in 1992 and 1997
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Bates, Stephen (13 February 2025). "Tim Radford obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
- ^ Radford, Tim (3 June 2008). "The Guardian writer profile". London. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
- ^ a b c d e Thornton, Jacqui (15 March 2025). "Tim Radford". The Lancet. 405 (10482): 888. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(25)00465-9. ISSN 0140-6736. PMID 40090334.
- ^ Highfield, Roger (12 February 2025). "Tim Radford (1940-2025)". absw.org.uk. Association of British Science Writers. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
- ^ Radford, Tim (2011). "Of course scientists can communicate". Nature. 469 (7331): 445. Bibcode:2011Natur.469..445R. doi:10.1038/469445a. PMID 21270851. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
- ^ "Association of British Science Writers award winners". Retrieved 6 October 2012.
Bibliography
[edit]- The Consolations of Physics: Why the Wonders of the Universe can make you Happy (2018), 192 pages, Sceptre (August 2018), Paperback ISBN 978-1473658165
- The Address Book: Our Place in the Scheme of Things (2009), 224 pages, Fourth Estate (April 2011), Paperback ISBN 978-0007356294; Hardback ISBN 978-0007255207
- The Crisis of Life on Earth: Our Legacy from the Second Millennium (1990), 224 pages, Thorsons (October 1990), Hardback ISBN 978-0722521397
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