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Peter Usborne
CBE
Born
Thomas Peter Usborne

(1937-08-18)18 August 1937
Died30 March 2023(2023-03-30) (aged 85)
EducationSummer Fields School,[1] Oxford;
Eton College,[1] Berkshire
Alma materBalliol College, Oxford;[1] INSEAD[1]
OccupationPublisher
Years active1973–2023
Known forUsborne Publishing

Thomas Peter Usborne CBE (18 August 1937 – 30 March 2023) was a British publisher. In the early 1960s, Usborne co-founded the satirical magazine Private Eye.[1] In 1973 he founded the children's book publisher Usborne Publishing.[1][2]

Education

[edit]

Usborne was educated at Summer Fields School,[1] an independent boys' boarding and day preparatory school in the city of Oxford, followed by Eton College,[1] an independent boys' boarding school near the town of Windsor, in Berkshire. He then went up to Balliol College at the University of Oxford,[1] followed by INSEAD business school,[1] at the time based in Fontainebleau, a commune of the city of Paris, in France.

Career

[edit]

Usborne was the first managing director of the London-based satirical magazine Private Eye from its foundation in 1961, before leaving to study at INSEAD.[3]

After taking a position at the British Printing Corporation, he started working in children's books when he found out he was going to become a parent.[1] Soon afterwards, in 1973, he set up his own company.[4][5][6][1]

His eponymous publishing company was named Children's Publisher of the Year at the British Book Awards in both 2012 and 2020,[7] Independent Publisher of the Year at the Independent Publishing Awards in 2014,[8] and Private Business of the Year in 2015.[9]

Usborne specialised in illustrated children's books: according to his Daily Telegraph obituary, most of the company's books were "conceived, written and designed in-house".[1] Its best-known books include the Usborne Puzzle Adventure series,[10] the World of the Unknown series[11][12][13] the Book of the Future, Poppy and Sam's Farmyard Tales,[11] Sticker Dolly Dressing and the "That's not my"[11] series of touchy-feely board books for babies by Fiona Watt.[14]

Personal life

[edit]

Usborne said that parenthood had been the greatest privilege of his life, and that publishing children's books had been an extension of that.[15][16]

In 2007, the Usborne family founded The Usborne Foundation,[17] a registered charity[18] which harnesses research, design and technology to create playful media addressing issues from literacy to health. Teach Your Monster to Read[19] is a series of games that has helped millions of children learn to read, funded by The Usborne Foundation. His son, Martin, also runs a publishing company, Hoxton Mini Press.[20][21]

Death

[edit]

On 30 March 2023, Usborne died "suddenly but peacefully", surrounded by his family. He was 85. Usborne was survived by his wife, Wendy, children Nicola and Martin, and his five grandchildren.[22]

Awards and honours

[edit]

Usborne was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to the publishing industry,[23] and Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to literature.[24] He was awarded the London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015.[25][26]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Peter Usborne, co-founder of Private Eye and successful publisher of children's books – obituary". Daily Telegraph. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  2. ^ Horn, Caroline (22 October 2007). "The Usborne Identity – an interview with Peter Usborne". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 11 September 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2008.
  3. ^ "'Genius' children's publisher Peter Usborne dies aged 85". The Irish News. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Thomas Peter Usborne M.B.E." usbornefamilytree.com.
  5. ^ "How I Made It: Peter Usborne, founder of Usborne Publishing". The Sunday Times. 28 April 2013.
  6. ^ Natalie Graham (14 March 2014). "Work is child's play for book publisher Peter Usborne". ft.com.
  7. ^ "The British Book Awards 2020 | The Nibbies | The Bookseller". www.thebookseller.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  8. ^ Shaffi, Sarah (27 February 2014). "Usborne, Nosy Crow, Summersdale winners at Independent Publishing Awards | The Bookseller". www.thebookseller.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  9. ^ Eyre, Charlotte (2 October 2015). "Usborne crowned 'private business of the year' | The Bookseller". www.thebookseller.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  10. ^ Bell, Alice (28 June 2021). "Anyone else want games of those Usborne Puzzle Adventure books from the 80s and 90s?". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  11. ^ a b c "Usborne Publishing". usborne.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  12. ^ Flood, Alison (12 June 2019). "'Ghosts shaped my life': out-of-print children's classic to be resurrected". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  13. ^ Barnett, David (21 December 2021). "The book I got for Christmas: 'Even the cover was terrifying'". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  14. ^ "How this bestselling series from Usborne came about in 1998 | Toppsta". Toppsta. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
  15. ^ "Who is Peter Usborne?". Usborne. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  16. ^ "Meet the Usborne Family". Usborne. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  17. ^ "The Usborne Foundation". The Usborne Foundation. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  18. ^ "The Usborne Foundation, registered charity no. 4034232". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
  19. ^ "Teach Your Monster to Read". www.teachyourmonstertoread.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  20. ^ "Hoxton Mini Press publishes collectable photography books". Hoxton Mini Press. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Good bye, Pa. I love you". Hoxton Mini Press. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  22. ^ "News from Usborne March 2023 | Usborne | Be Curious". usborne.com. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
  23. ^ United Kingdom: "No. 59647". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 December 2010. p. 23.
  24. ^ "No. 63571". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 2022. p. N10.
  25. ^ Joshua Farrington (6 March 2015). "Peter Usborne to receive LBF Lifetime Achievement award". thebookseller.com.
  26. ^ "Peter Usborne to receive The London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award 2015". The London Book Fair. 6 March 2015.
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