John Junor facts for kids

Sir John Donald Brown Junor (born January 15, 1919 – died May 3, 1997) was a well-known Scottish journalist. He was the main editor of the Sunday Express newspaper for a long time, from 1954 to 1986. Before that, he wrote a regular column for the same newspaper. After leaving the Sunday Express, he went on to work for The Mail on Sunday.

Sir John Junor's Early Life

John Junor was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He went to Glasgow University to study. During World War II, he served in the Fleet Air Arm, which is the part of the navy that uses aircraft. While at Glasgow University, he became the leader of the University Liberal Club. He later tried to become a Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party three times in Scotland, but he was not successful. He was given the title of 'Sir' in 1980 for his achievements.

A Career in Journalism

Sir John Junor was famous for his column in the Sunday Express. He kept writing this column even when he was the editor. His column was known for using certain phrases over and over again. Two of these were "pass the sick-bag, Alice" and "I don't know, but I think we should be told". He also often mentioned the small Scottish town of Auchtermuchty in Fife.

Junor was known for sharing his opinions very strongly in his column. Sometimes, his comments caused controversy. For example, he once wrote something that led to many complaints. People said his comment was unfair to a group of people. Because of these complaints, the Press Council, which is a group that checks on newspapers, officially criticized him in May 1985.

He was also often made fun of in a satirical magazine called Private Eye. In this magazine, he was sometimes called 'Sir Jonah Junor'.

Speaking Out in Parliament

On January 24, 1957, Sir John Junor was called to the Bar of the House of Commons. This is a very serious event where someone is officially told off for showing disrespect to Parliament. He was the last person who was not a politician to be called there for this reason. The problem was about an article he published in the Sunday Express on December 16, 1956. The article talked about how petrol (gasoline) was being given out.

Sir John Junor apologized to Parliament. He said:

Mr Speaker, I want to say I am truly sorry for any suggestions or bad ideas I might have given about the honesty of the Members of this House in the article I published in the Sunday Express on December 16. I never meant to be rude to Parliament. My only goal was to show attention to what I thought was unfair in how petrol was given out. I believed that these allowances were a fair and important topic for a free newspaper to talk about. That was my view then and it is my view now, Sir. But I am very, very sorry that the way I wrote it ended up being disrespectful to this House. I have nothing more to say. I now leave myself in the hands of this House.

Sir John Junor's Family

Sir John Junor got married in 1942. He had two children. His daughter, Penny Junor, is also a journalist. His grandson, Sam Leith, is also a journalist.

Books by Sir John Junor

• The Best of JJ (published in 1981)
• Listening for a midnight tram: memoirs (published in 1990)