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Allan Massie

August 18, 2023

For the sailor, see Alan Massey.

Allan Johnstone Massie CBE FRSL FRSE (born 16 October 1938)[1] is a Scottish journalist, columnist, sports writer and novelist.[2] He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He has lived in the Scottish Borders for the last 25 years, and now lives in Selkirk.

Allan Massie

CBE FRSL FRSE
Born (1938-10-16) 16 October 1938 (age 84)
Singapore
CitizenshipBritish
EducationGlenalmond College
Alma materTrinity College, Cambridge
OccupationWriter
Years active1978 - Present
EmployerThe Scotsman
Political partyConservative
Spouse
Alison Langlands
​
(m. 1973)​
[1]
ChildrenAlex Massie

Louis Massie

Claudia Massie
AwardsScottish Arts Council Book Award, Frederick Niven Literary Award

Early life

Born in Singapore, where his father was a rubber planter for Sime Darby, Massie spent his childhood in Aberdeenshire. He was educated at Drumtochty Castle preparatory school and Glenalmond College in Perthshire before going on to attend Trinity College, Cambridge, where he read history.

Career

Journalist

Massie is a journalist and critic of fiction, writing regular columns for The Scotsman, The Sunday Times (Scotland) and the Scottish Daily Mail. He has been The Scotsman's chief fiction reviewer for a quarter of a century and also regularly writes about rugby union and cricket for that paper. He has previously been a columnist for The Daily Telegraph, the Glasgow Herald, and was the Sunday Standard's television critic during that paper's brief existence. He is also a contributor to The Spectator - where he writes an occasional column, Life and Letters - the Literary Review, The Independent, and The Catholic Herald. He has also written for the New York Review of Books.

His conservative political outlook is apparent, despite the then decline of Conservative influence in Scotland. He was a leading, if lonely, campaigner against Scottish devolution, and a critic of much of the legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament since its establishment in 1999. Though initially in favour of greater devolutionary powers for Scotland, his views on devolution changed during the Thatcher years and he came to regret his support for the 1979 devolution referendum.

In his literary reviews, his preferences lie towards traditional novels rather than the avant-garde. He is a great admirer of Sir Walter Scott (and a past president of the Sir Walter Scott Club). Among contemporary novelists, he is a champion of the Russian writer Andreï Makine and Scotland's William McIlvanney. Though he has criticised Irvine Welsh and James Kelman, he has admired some of the latter's work, arguing that Kelman is an important voice for a section of society often ignored in literary fiction.

Novelist

He is the author of nearly 30 books, including 20 novels. He is notable for writing about the distant past, and the middle class, rather than grittier elements of the present. The most successful of his novels, at least in terms of sales, have been a series of reconstructed autobiographies or biographies of Roman political figures, including Augustus, Tiberius, Mark Antony, Caesar, Caligula and Nero's Heirs. Gore Vidal called him a "master of the long-ago historical novel." His most recent book is The Thistle and the Rose, a series of essays on the often thorny relationship between Scotland and England, in which he takes a strong Unionist viewpoint.

His 1989 novel about Vichy France, A Question of Loyalties, won the Saltire Society's Scottish Book of the Year award - an award he has been shortlisted for more than once. The Sins of the Fathers (1991) caused a controversy when Nicholas Mosley resigned from the judging panel for the Booker Prize, protesting that none of his books (of which Massie's was the favourite) made it on to the shortlist (Martin Amis' Time's Arrow edged out Massie's novel for the final spot on the six book list).

Those two novels, and Shadows of Empire constitute a loose trilogy in which a constant concern is the potential danger of idealism and ideology, as well as the struggle to lead a decent personal life in indecent political times.

In 2009, Massie brought out what he calls "a private novel" (i.e. an examination of private morality rather than the large political or "public" dilemmas examined in his other contemporary novels). This innovative work, Surviving, is set in Rome and concerns a group of English-speaking alcoholics and the intensity of their friendships. It is also a highly personal work, reflecting the author's own experience of Italy in the seventies, although the book is set in the nineties.

His 2010 novel, Death in Bordeaux, sees Massie return to Vichy France in the first of a trilogy.

Other works include critical studies of Muriel Spark and Colette as well as histories of Edinburgh and Glasgow and A Portrait of Scottish Rugby.

Massie was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 Birthday Honours for services to literature.[3]

All-time Scotland XV

Massie is a keen rugby fan and writer, and came up with an all time XV in 1984.[4] Firstly, he excludes any players from before 1951, as he says it is unfair to judge the abilities of players without having been able to see them for himself, and secondly, his list, being published in the mid 80s excludes most of the people involved in the 1990 Grand Slam:

He also supplies a list of reserves:

Players that Massie includes in his early selection, but not in the final team include:

Awards

Massie has received the following awards:[2]

Bibliography

Novels

  • Change and Decay in All Around I See - (1978)
  • The Last Peacock - (1980)
  • The Death of Men - (1981)
  • One Night in Winter - (1984)
  • Augustus (1986)
  • A Question of Loyalties - (1989)
  • The Hanging Tree - (1990)
  • Tiberius - (1991)
  • The Sins of the Father - (1991)
  • Caesar - (1993)
  • The Ragged Lion - (1994)
  • These Enchanted Woods (sequel to The Last Peacock) - (1993)
  • King David (novel) - (1995)
  • Shadows of Empire - (1997)
  • Antony - (1997)
  • Nero's Heirs - (1999)
  • The Evening of the World - (2001)
  • Caligula - (2003)
  • Arthur the King - (2004)
  • Charlemagne and Roland - (2007)
  • Surviving - (2009)
  • Klaus: and other stories - (2010)
  • Death in Bordeaux - (2010)
  • Dark Summer in Bordeaux - (2012)
  • Cold Winter in Bordeaux - (2014)
  • End Games in Bordeaux - (2015)

Non-fiction

  • Muriel Spark - (1979)
  • Ill Met by Gaslight: Five Edinburgh Murders - (1980)
  • The Caesars - (1983)
  • Aberdeen: Portrait of a City - (1984)
  • A Portrait of Scottish Rugby (Polygon, Edinburgh; ISBN 0-904919-84-6) - (1984)
  • Colette - (1986)
  • 101 Great Scots - (1987)
  • Byron's Travels - (1988)
  • The Novelist's View of the Market Economy - (1988)
  • How Should Health Services be Financed?: A Patient’s View - (1988)
  • Glasgow: Portraits of a City - (1989)
  • The Novel Today: A Critical Guide to the British Novel, 1970-1989 - (1990)
  • Edinburgh - (1994)
  • The History of Selkirk Merchant Company 1694 - 1994 - (1994)
  • The Thistle and the Rose: Six Centuries of Love and Hate Between the Scots and the English - (2005)
  • The Royal Stuarts: A History of the Family That Shaped Britain - (2010)

Edited books

  • Edinburgh and the Borders: In Verse - (1983)
  • P.E.N. New Fiction II - (1987)

The History Man columns in Scots Heritage Magazine

Date Issue : Pages Topic(s)
2014 65 (Autumn) : 18-19 Edinburgh International Festival

Book reviews

Date Review article Work(s) reviewed
4 October 2008 Massie, Allan (4 October 2008). "A very slippery book". Books. The Spectator. Alexander William Kinglake (1844). Eothen. John Ollivier.

Reviews

  • McKie, Dave (1980), review of The Last Peacock, in Bold, Christine (ed.), Cencrastus No. 3, Summer 1980, pp. 42 & 43

Further reading

  • Paterson, Lindsay (1982), Language and Society: The Novels of Allan Massie, in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), Cencrastus No. 10, Autumn 1982, pp. 34 – 36, ISSN 0264-0856

References

  1. ^ a b "Massie, Allan Johnstone, (born 16 Oct. 1938), author and journalist". Who's Who. 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U26927.
  2. ^ a b "Allan Massie". British Council. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
  3. ^ "No. 60534". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 2013. p. 8.
  4. ^ Massie (1984), p195

External links

  • Allan Massie at IMDb

August 18, 2023
allan, massie, sailor, alan, massey, this, article, lead, section, short, adequately, summarize, points, please, consider, expanding, lead, provide, accessible, overview, important, aspects, article, july, 2014, allan, johnstone, massie, frsl, frse, born, octo. For the sailor see Alan Massey This article s lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article July 2014 Allan Johnstone Massie CBE FRSL FRSE born 16 October 1938 1 is a Scottish journalist columnist sports writer and novelist 2 He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature He has lived in the Scottish Borders for the last 25 years and now lives in Selkirk Allan MassieCBE FRSL FRSEBorn 1938 10 16 16 October 1938 age 84 SingaporeCitizenshipBritishEducationGlenalmond CollegeAlma materTrinity College CambridgeOccupationWriterYears active1978 PresentEmployerThe ScotsmanPolitical partyConservativeSpouseAlison Langlands m 1973 wbr 1 ChildrenAlex Massie Louis Massie Claudia MassieAwardsScottish Arts Council Book Award Frederick Niven Literary Award Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 2 1 Journalist 2 2 Novelist 3 All time Scotland XV 4 Awards 5 Bibliography 5 1 Novels 5 2 Non fiction 5 3 Edited books 5 4 The History Man columns in Scots Heritage Magazine 5 5 Book reviews 6 Reviews 7 Further reading 8 References 9 External linksEarly life EditBorn in Singapore where his father was a rubber planter for Sime Darby Massie spent his childhood in Aberdeenshire He was educated at Drumtochty Castle preparatory school and Glenalmond College in Perthshire before going on to attend Trinity College Cambridge where he read history Career EditJournalist Edit Massie is a journalist and critic of fiction writing regular columns for The Scotsman The Sunday Times Scotland and the Scottish Daily Mail He has been The Scotsman s chief fiction reviewer for a quarter of a century and also regularly writes about rugby union and cricket for that paper He has previously been a columnist for The Daily Telegraph the Glasgow Herald and was the Sunday Standard s television critic during that paper s brief existence He is also a contributor to The Spectator where he writes an occasional column Life and Letters the Literary Review The Independent and The Catholic Herald He has also written for the New York Review of Books His conservative political outlook is apparent despite the then decline of Conservative influence in Scotland He was a leading if lonely campaigner against Scottish devolution and a critic of much of the legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament since its establishment in 1999 Though initially in favour of greater devolutionary powers for Scotland his views on devolution changed during the Thatcher years and he came to regret his support for the 1979 devolution referendum In his literary reviews his preferences lie towards traditional novels rather than the avant garde He is a great admirer of Sir Walter Scott and a past president of the Sir Walter Scott Club Among contemporary novelists he is a champion of the Russian writer Andrei Makine and Scotland s William McIlvanney Though he has criticised Irvine Welsh and James Kelman he has admired some of the latter s work arguing that Kelman is an important voice for a section of society often ignored in literary fiction Novelist Edit He is the author of nearly 30 books including 20 novels He is notable for writing about the distant past and the middle class rather than grittier elements of the present The most successful of his novels at least in terms of sales have been a series of reconstructed autobiographies or biographies of Roman political figures including Augustus Tiberius Mark Antony Caesar Caligula and Nero s Heirs Gore Vidal called him a master of the long ago historical novel His most recent book is The Thistle and the Rose a series of essays on the often thorny relationship between Scotland and England in which he takes a strong Unionist viewpoint His 1989 novel about Vichy France A Question of Loyalties won the Saltire Society s Scottish Book of the Year award an award he has been shortlisted for more than once The Sins of the Fathers 1991 caused a controversy when Nicholas Mosley resigned from the judging panel for the Booker Prize protesting that none of his books of which Massie s was the favourite made it on to the shortlist Martin Amis Time s Arrow edged out Massie s novel for the final spot on the six book list Those two novels and Shadows of Empire constitute a loose trilogy in which a constant concern is the potential danger of idealism and ideology as well as the struggle to lead a decent personal life in indecent political times In 2009 Massie brought out what he calls a private novel i e an examination of private morality rather than the large political or public dilemmas examined in his other contemporary novels This innovative work Surviving is set in Rome and concerns a group of English speaking alcoholics and the intensity of their friendships It is also a highly personal work reflecting the author s own experience of Italy in the seventies although the book is set in the nineties His 2010 novel Death in Bordeaux sees Massie return to Vichy France in the first of a trilogy Other works include critical studies of Muriel Spark and Colette as well as histories of Edinburgh and Glasgow and A Portrait of Scottish Rugby Massie was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire CBE in the 2013 Birthday Honours for services to literature 3 All time Scotland XV EditMassie is a keen rugby fan and writer and came up with an all time XV in 1984 4 Firstly he excludes any players from before 1951 as he says it is unfair to judge the abilities of players without having been able to see them for himself and secondly his list being published in the mid 80s excludes most of the people involved in the 1990 Grand Slam Backline Andy Irvine Arthur Smith Jim Renwick Ken Scotland Roger Baird Half backs John Rutherford Roy Laidlaw Forwards Hugh McLeod Colin Deans Sandy Carmichael Gordon Brown Alastair McHarg Douglas Elliot Jim Telfer captain David LeslieHe also supplies a list of reserves Jock Turner David Chisholm Alex Hastie David Rollo Norman Bruce Iain PaxtonPlayers that Massie includes in his early selection but not in the final team include Ian Laughland Chris Rea Ian McGeechan Robertson David Johnston Aitken Milne Bruce Laidlaw Mike Campbell Lamerton Peter Brown Tomes Cuthbertson Jim Greenwood Ron Glasgow Derrick Grant Rodger Arneil Jim Calder Awards EditMassie has received the following awards 2 Scottish Arts Council Book Award for The Death of Men 1982 Frederick Niven Literary Award for The Last Peacock 1980 Bibliography EditNovels Edit Change and Decay in All Around I See 1978 The Last Peacock 1980 The Death of Men 1981 One Night in Winter 1984 Augustus 1986 A Question of Loyalties 1989 The Hanging Tree 1990 Tiberius 1991 The Sins of the Father 1991 Caesar 1993 The Ragged Lion 1994 These Enchanted Woods sequel to The Last Peacock 1993 King David novel 1995 Shadows of Empire 1997 Antony 1997 Nero s Heirs 1999 The Evening of the World 2001 Caligula 2003 Arthur the King 2004 Charlemagne and Roland 2007 Surviving 2009 Klaus and other stories 2010 Death in Bordeaux 2010 Dark Summer in Bordeaux 2012 Cold Winter in Bordeaux 2014 End Games in Bordeaux 2015 Non fiction Edit Muriel Spark 1979 Ill Met by Gaslight Five Edinburgh Murders 1980 The Caesars 1983 Aberdeen Portrait of a City 1984 A Portrait of Scottish Rugby Polygon Edinburgh ISBN 0 904919 84 6 1984 Colette 1986 101 Great Scots 1987 Byron s Travels 1988 The Novelist s View of the Market Economy 1988 How Should Health Services be Financed A Patient s View 1988 Glasgow Portraits of a City 1989 The Novel Today A Critical Guide to the British Novel 1970 1989 1990 Edinburgh 1994 The History of Selkirk Merchant Company 1694 1994 1994 The Thistle and the Rose Six Centuries of Love and Hate Between the Scots and the English 2005 The Royal Stuarts A History of the Family That Shaped Britain 2010 Edited books Edit Edinburgh and the Borders In Verse 1983 P E N New Fiction II 1987 The History Man columns in Scots Heritage Magazine Edit Date Issue Pages Topic s 2014 65 Autumn 18 19 Edinburgh International FestivalBook reviews Edit Date Review article Work s reviewed4 October 2008 Massie Allan 4 October 2008 A very slippery book Books The Spectator Alexander William Kinglake 1844 Eothen John Ollivier Reviews EditMcKie Dave 1980 review of The Last Peacock in Bold Christine ed Cencrastus No 3 Summer 1980 pp 42 amp 43Further reading EditPaterson Lindsay 1982 Language and Society The Novels of Allan Massie in Hearn Sheila G ed Cencrastus No 10 Autumn 1982 pp 34 36 ISSN 0264 0856References Edit a b Massie Allan Johnstone born 16 Oct 1938 author and journalist Who s Who 2007 doi 10 1093 ww 9780199540884 013 U26927 a b Allan Massie British Council Retrieved 13 September 2013 No 60534 The London Gazette Supplement 15 June 2013 p 8 Massie 1984 p195External links EditAllan Massie at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Allan Massie amp oldid 1159029389, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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