Derek Parker

For the footballer, see Derek Parker (footballer).

Derek Parker (born 1932) is a British writer and broadcaster. He is the author of numerous works on literature, ballet, and opera, and with his wife Julia of several books about astrology.

Biography

He was born in Looe, Cornwall, and educated at Fowey Grammar School (1941–49). He worked as reporter with The Cornishman (Penzance) (1949–55) then as drama critic with The Western Morning News (Plymouth) (1956–70).^[1] Subsequently he worked as writer, announcer and interviewer with TWW (Independent Television, Cardiff) being the first face to be seen at its opening transmission, then as freelance writer and broadcaster for BBC radio and television, reading the news from Alexandra Palace and broadcasting from Portland Place. He was a drama script advisor to ABC Television. During the 1960s and 1970s he wrote and introduced innumerable radio programmes about the arts, including series about the ballet and opera, and features on individual artists, interviewing among others Tamara Karsavina and Margot Fonteyn, Boris Christoff and Maggie Teyte. He introduced long-running series both for BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service, such as The Poem Itself and The Paperback Programme. He reviewed non-fiction and television for The Times, was a columnist for The Listener, and contributed to The Spectator. He reviewed for The Good Book Guide from its opening issue until 2002.

He was author with his wife (astrologer Julia Parker) of The Compleat Astrologer (1971), the first popular modern textbook of astrology,^[1] which sold over a million copies in fourteen languages. This has been followed by a number of other books about astrology, including 2001's Parkers' Astrology. In The Question of Astrology (1970) Parker examined modern attitudes to the subject, quoting the views of many authorities both approving and disapproving of it. During the same year he discussed astrology in a radio programme with Dr Jonathan Miller, Michel Gauquelin and others. This was the first BBC programme to cover astrology from the point of view of both supporters and sceptics; previous coverage had been largely sceptical. Both he and his wife have lectured on astrology in Europe, the Americas and Australia. They migrated to Australia in 2002.

Parker has been editor of Poetry Review and of The Author; Chairman, Society of Authors (1981–82) and member of its Grand Council; member of the Grand Council of the Royal Academy of Dance; member of the General Committee, Royal Literary Fund (1969–2002) (as Registrar 1977-2002). He regularly introduces programmes of classical music for 2MBS-FM, a Sydney radio station broadcasting on the Web from 2MBS.com

Publications

As sole author

• The Fall of Phaethon (1954)
• Beyond Wisdom (verse play, 1957)
• Byron and his World (1968)
• The Twelfth Rose (ballet libretto, 1969)
• The Question of Astrology (1970)
• The Westcountry (1973)
• John Donne and his World (1975)
• Familiar to All: William Lilly and 17th century astrology (1975)
• Radio: the great years (1977)
• The Westcountry and the Sea (1980)
• The Memoirs of Cora Pearl (1983, fiction, as William Blatchford)
• The Eros Series of 15 erotic novels, published anonymously (1988–94)
• God of the Dance: Vaslav Nijinsky (1988)
• The Trade of Angels (1988, fiction)
• The Royal Academy of Dancing: the first 75 years (1995)
• Writing Erotic Fiction (1995)
• Nell Gwyn (2000)
• Roman Murder Mystery: the true story of Pompilia (2001)
• Casanova (2002)
• Cellini (2004)
• Voltaire (2005)
• The Trampled Wife: the scandalous life of Mary Eleanor Bowes (2006)
• Outback: the discovery of Australia's interior (2007)
• Banjo Paterson: the man who wrote Waltzing Matilda (2009)
• Arthur Phillip: Australia's first Governor (2010)
• Governor Macquarie: his life, times and revolutionary vision for Australia (2010)

As joint author

In collaboration with Paul Casimir

• Company of Two (1955)

In collaboration with Julia Parker

• The Compleat Astrologer (1971)
• The Compleat Lover (1972)
• Derek and Julia Parker's Love Signs (1973)
• The Compleat Astrologers' Love Signs (1974)
• The Immortals (1976)
• The Story and the Song: British musical comedy, (1979)
• How do you Know Who you Are? (1980)
• Do It Yourself Health (1982)
• A History of Astrology (1983)
• The New Compleat Astrologer (1984)
• Dreaming (1985)
• Life Signs (1986)
• A Traveller's Guide to Egypt (1986)
• The Future Now (1988)
• A Traveller's Guide to Cyprus (1989)
• A World Atlas of the Supernatural (1990)
• The Secret World of your Dreams (1990)
• Parkers' Astrology (1991)
• The Power of Magic (1992)
• The Sun and Moon Signs Library (1992)
• Face Facts (1993)
• The Complete Book of Dreams (1995)
• Love Signs (1996)
• Parkers' Astrology Pack (1997)
• Parkers' Prediction Pack (1998)
• The KISS Guide to Astrology (2000)
• The Companion Guide to Astrology (2008)
• Parkers' Encyclopedia of Astrology (2010)

As editor

• Poetry Review (1966–70)
• Selected Letters of Edith Sitwell (1970, with John Lehmann)
• The Author (1974–2002)
• Sacheverell Sitwell: a symposium (1975)
• An Anthology of Erotic Verse (1980)
• An Anthology of Erotic Prose (1981)
• Love Confessed (1983)
• The Kings of England (1995)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Derek and Julia Parker's Booksite". Parkeriters. http://www.parkeriters.com/. Retrieved 2010-09-08. 

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Name	Parker, Derek
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Date of birth	1932
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