Bill Purdue, 1941-2020

A prolific popular historian who published on everything from world war to Christmas traditions has died.

A.W. (Bill) Purdue, the son of a policeman, was born in 1941 and grew up in North Shields and Whitley Bay, both now in Tyne and Wear, before studying history at King’s College London. Before embarking on an academic career, he worked for two years in the instructor branch of the Royal Navy.

After lecturing at what was then Newcastle Polytechnic (it became Northumbria University in 1992), Professor Purdue spent most of his career at the Open University. When he eventually retired as reader in British history, he returned to Northumbria as a visiting professor.

Long based in Allendale, Northumberland, Professor Purdue served as a county councillor from 1989 to 2009. His initial research was on the origins of the Labour Party in his own part of England and his continuing passion for regional history found an outlet in books such as Merchants and Gentry in North-East England 1650-1830: the Carrs and the Ellisons (1999) and Newcastle: the Biography (2011).

Yet his prolific writing career also saw Professor Purdue addressing far larger topics spanning royal, military and popular history. He was the sole author of The First World War (2014) and The Second World War (1999 and 2011), collaborated with Norman McCord on British History 1815-1914 (2007) and joined forces with J. M. Golby for both The Civilisation of the Crowd: Popular Culture in England 1750-1900 (1984 and 1999) and The Making of the Modern Christmas (2000). A new edition of Long to Reign?: the Survival of Monarchies in the Modern World (2005) is due to appear next year.

Along with his books and journal articles, Professor Purdue was for many years a regular reviewer of publications in social, military and political history for Times Higher Education.

Jeremy Black, former professor of history at the University of Exeter, recalled Professor Purdue as “a fun-lover of a somewhat old-fashioned type” whose “laughter was frequent” and who was “brilliant on the inanities of academic life”. He was also a striking presence notable for “his combination of suit top and bright corduroy trousers, his countryman-in-town persona, the pipe to the fore, his forward stance leaning in to any conversational group...The Northern Counties Club, of which he was eventually a very popular chairman, found him particularly in his element.”

Professor Purdue died unexpectedly on 17 November and is survived by his wife, Marie Conte-Helm, and their daughter, Jessica.

matthew.reisz@timeshighereducation.com