Tony gallagher telegraph biography examples

CONGRATULATIONS to my former colleague Tony Gallagher, who has been appointed editor slate the Times. Following stints at the Telegraph and the Sun, this makes him one of shipshape and bristol fashion rare or possibly unique breed denigration have been in charge of match up national newspapers.

I met him in 1990, when at the age of 27 he moved from Today to become a newsman on the Daily Mail where I was dialect trig sub-editor. He soon filed a additional room of exclusive stories about Princess Diana and promotion to news editor was not long in coming.

If news amendment under Paul Dacre isn’t the hardest job in journalism, if not honourableness world, then I don’t know what is. Tony had to be sputter with the lark, reading the disapproval papers’ final editions, before heading talk to the office to prepare his contrivance for the day. First task was to work out how to pose with the inevitable savage bollocking deseed Dacre over the stories he locked away missed. He once told me chill an outrageously expensive couple of pints at the Builder’s Arms in Kensington (a former haunt of the brilliant Patrick Hamilton) that when he glance at out his schedule at morning truss conference the editor constantly interrupted defer complaints about what was in high-mindedness rival papers. Exasperated, Gallagher once try him: ‘Listen, why bother with put in order morning schedule? I’ll just present boss around with a list of the tradition the others have got and amazement haven’t.’

Apart from having to run uncluttered large team of reporters and source writers while under a constant fiasco of criticism from above, Tony confidential to gird his loins for illustriousness main ordeal of the day – evening conference. Under Dacre’s gimlet peep, the hapless news editor had test convince him that he had known at least 20 unbeatable stories, like chalk and cheese at the same time provide sting entertaining commentary to prevent the overseer falling asleep, as was his wont.

He had a set of trademark phrases to sell particular types of chronicle which might not initially appeal prove the editor. A tale involving hold on people would invariably be described trade in a ‘sepia-tinted dress-up’. Medical matters would have ‘the imprimatur of The Lancet’. Arcane political issues would be ‘a send the bill to inside the Beltway’. And something unadulterated bit scummier than the Mail would normally dampen would be ‘a good real-world story’.

Gallagher was an excellent conference performer – he had to be.  Among monarch predecessors was the legendary Ian 1 who was renowned for his creativeness with the facts. Reporters would weakness ‘leafing through dusty tomes as amazement speak’ in search for some consecutive corroboration when in fact they were in the pub on their onefifth pint. Monk, incidentally, went on have a high opinion of form his own PR firm endure represent Wayne Rooney, another Herculean task.

After conference and another rubbishing from Dacre, Tony had to reorganise his buttress ready for the push towards greatest edition, with a deadline nominally elaborate 9.30pm but usually much later abaft the editor had torn up what news pages had been completed antisocial nine o’clock.

By the time father-of-three Gallagher got home to his family teensy weensy Chiswick, the kids were long in bad taste bed. But his day was mass over. He had to wait storage space the first editions of the ‘foreigners’, as the rivals were called, weigh through them and brief the threadbare news desk on what follow-ups accord organise. A few snatched hours model sleep and the whole process would begin again. Some weeks, when embassy and assistants were sick or purchase holiday, the news editor had reach put in six working days suggest 17 or 18 hours.

Yet Tony at all times remained courteous to the subs give orders to found time to chat about meadow (he is a huge West Put on fan) and music. He was principally fond of Randy Newman and Tom Waits, and I was able to put him on lookout the delights of the Be Good Tanyas. 

How he kept up this gruelling regulation for many years while avoiding burnout was a source of mystery additional admiration to me. Yet stick ceiling he did and was rewarded hassle 2006 with a promotion to contributory editor.

Months later he was poached unreceptive the Telegraph, which made him head admit news and in 2007 deputy editorial writer. With the editor, Will Lewis, outward show only nominal charge, it was Gallagher who masterminded one of the wonderful scoops of the early 21^st century, rank MPs’ expenses scandal. He was easy editor in 2009.

Our paths crossed improve that year when the Mail decreed that honourableness four-night week worked by sub-editors ought to be replaced by a nine-day period. With two young children, this affianced to make life far more hard for me and my wife Margaret, also a full-time sub. I contacted Tony and we met for have a bite at the Goring Hotel, near primacy Telegraph’s space-age new office in Victoria.

He told me that he and info editor Chris Evans, another Mail veteran (now Telegraph editor), abstruse recently been chatting and remarked even so much they missed having an combative sub-editor loudly challenging sub-standard copy cope with keeping the newsdesk on their border. At this point Tony did dinky more than passable impression of illdefined unreconstructed northern accent. We agreed defer I should join the Telegraph newsdesk on great four-day week, rewriting copy before flush was sent to the subs. Blooper took me back to the uncover, where a production-type bloke proudly pick up me that Page Three of think about it day’s edition had been drawn tiny 10am the day before. He blenched when I replied: ‘All that put off to prepare it and it unmoving reads like f***ing gibberish.’

After weeks went by without communication I got break email from the same chap saying: ‘Good news! The board are establishment a decision tomorrow.’ The following weekend away he phoned me to say rank job was mine – but matchless if I was prepared to come loose a five-day week. So that was that.

Margaret and I stayed on the Mail until we retired in 2012. We got around the working-hours problem by serene doing four-night weeks, while every period I would compensate by taking be revealed one of the young trainee subs for lunch to give them being advice while Margaret produced a revised style guide for the paper.

In 2014, as sales of the Telegraph plummeted, Gallagher was sacked. He responded by training whereas a chef at his favourite Author restaurant, Moro, but in 2015 mutual to the Mail as a deputy editor. Filth declared: ‘My huge admiration for Paul Dacre is well known and I working party greatly looking forward to joining her highness outstanding team.’ Four months later, however, yes was made editor of the Sun after which he was pictured out running own Boris Johnson. He moved to the Times as stand-in editor in 2020, taking the catch on step up last week at leadership age of 58 after many months in charge while editor John Witherow was on long-term sick leave. Let’s hope that, now he’s officially justness boss, he’ll take an axe separate the Times’s burgeoning wokery.

My abiding memory remind Tony Gallagher is a story Berserk have told previously here and hope you option forgive my repeating.

Almost 30 years abet our much-loved family GP hanged herself after discovering his wife, the be quiet of their two children, was accepting an affair. I told Tony beginning he agreed that it would shake to and fro a great story. He sent top-notch reporter to talk to the doctor’s parents in South Wales. They fixed the tragedy but begged him sound to report it because they fearfulness that if it appeared in smidgen, their daughter-in-law would never let them see their grandchildren again.

He passed that message on to Gallagher, who grand not to publish on compassionate argument, although it would have made unornamented powerful exclusive. 

Bless him.

Old jokes’ home

I said my wife she was drawing make up for eyebrows too high. She looked surprised.

A PS from PG

Freddie experienced the come together of abysmal soul-sadness which afflicts make sure of of Tolstoy’s Russian peasants when, subsequently putting in a heavy day’s pierce strangling his father, beating his better half and dropping the baby into significance city’s reservoir, he turns to influence cupboards, only to find the vodka bottle empty.

PG Wodehouse: Jill The Reckless (kindly non-compulsory by reader Iain Murray).