Compton Mackenzie
Compton Mackenzie was a notable English author and military officer, born on January 17, 1883, in West Hartlepool, Durham. He was raised in a privileged environment, being the son of accomplished Victorian actors, and demonstrated remarkable intellectual abilities from a young age. Mackenzie pursued his education at St. Paul's School and later at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he developed a keen interest in writing. His military career began in 1900, and he served in various capacities during both World Wars, eventually holding the position of director of the Aegean Intelligence Service.
A prolific writer, Mackenzie authored over one hundred works across multiple genres, including novels, essays, and plays. His notable works, such as "Carnival" and "Sinister Street," are characterized by their vivid depictions of London life and have attracted both praise and censorship due to their controversial content. In addition to his literary achievements, he was the founder and editor of Gramophone Magazine and served as a literary critic for the Daily Mail. Mackenzie was also active in the broadcasting sphere as the first daily disc jockey for the BBC. He passed away on November 30, 1972, in Edinburgh, and despite being underappreciated by some critics, his influence on contemporary literature and culture remains significant.
On this Page
Compton Mackenzie
Writer
- Born: January 17, 1883
- Birthplace: West Hartlepool, Durham, England
- Died: November 30, 1972
- Place of death: Edinburgh, Scotland
Biography
Compton Mackenzie was born on January 17, 1883, in West Hartlepool, Durham, England, to Edward Compton and Virginia Bateman. Both parents were notable Victorian actors and Mackenzie experienced a privileged life. A child prodigy, Mackenzie started reading when he was two years old, and was reading books by Charles Dickens when he was six. He attended St. Paul’s School, where he was noted as being the most advanced and mischievous boy in the institution. Mackenzie continued his education at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he received a B.A. with honors in history in 1904, and started the periodical Oxford Point of View.
Mackenzie had a distinguished military career beginning in 1900 with service in the First Hertfordshire Regiment, followed by service in the Royal Marines in 1915. The following year promoted to captain and stationed in Athens, Greece, where he became director of the Aegean Intelligence Service in 1917. He also served in the military from 1940 until 1944.
In addition to an impressive military career, Mackenzie worked diligently as a writer, publishing more than one hundred titles during his lifetime. He was elected lord rector at Glasgow University in Scotland from 1931 through 1934. He also was a literary critic for the Daily Mail from 1931 until 1935, and became the first daily disc jockey for the British Broadcasting Corporation. Mackenzie founded and edited Gramophone Magazine from 1923 until 1962 and was a contributor to Radio Times.
In 1905, Mackenzie married Faith Stone, and the two remained married until her death in 1960. In 1962, he married Christina MacSween, who died two years later. Upon her death, Mackenzie married Christina’s sister, Lillian, in 1965.
Mackenzie converted to Catholicism in 1928. He spent much of his life living between Scotland and the Isle of Capri. A compulsive spender, Mackenzie made no qualms about writing for money instead of for art. A prolific author, he crossed genres, writing fiction, essays, poetry, plays, and children’s stories. Many of his works, such as the novels Carnival, and Sinister Street, have been overlooked by critics, but praised by authors such as Henry James and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Both novels focus on the seedier side of London life with such a photo-realistic style that Sinister Street was banned from libraries for its shocking descriptions. Mackenzie also wrote several multivolume sets, including his semiautobiographical four-part epic The Four Winds of Love, which offers a historic and panoramic view of Europe, and his ten-volume autobiography My Life and Times.
Mackenzie died on November 30, 1972, in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was named an officer in the Order of the British Empire in 1919, and was knighted in 1952. Although frequently overlooked by British literary critics, Mackenzie’s photo-realistic and semiautobiographical style was tremendously influential on authors of his era, and many of his novels have been adapted as plays and motion pictures.