| Humphrey Carpenter |
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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 ). He also wrote histories of ) 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. 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''. Up 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. In 1983 , he formed a 1930s style Jazz Band , Vile Bodies , which for many years enjoyed a residency at the Ritz Hotel in London . 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 . 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
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