Roger Bryan of the MoS dies, aged 73
ROGER BRYAN, one of the founding journalists of The Mail on Sunday, has died aged 73 after a short illness.
Roger was the newspaper’s first Chief Sub Editor at its launch in 1982, leading a department responsible for writing headlines and captions and editing copy in the news and features sections.
After an uncertain start, the paper went on to enjoy phenomenal success – which continues 40 years on – thanks to huge investment by the proprietors and a team of highly talented journalists. Roger was among the most senior of these.
He would be promoted in 1986 to Assistant Editor, Production – known traditionally as Night Editor – a position he held for 16 years. During that time, the paper saw the introduction of computer production, a big increase in size and editions, and the move from Fleet Street to its present home in Kensington. Roger ensured his department met all these challenges.
He had entered journalism after university, and after working in local newspapers he moved to Fl eet St r eet and t he London Evening Standard in the 1970s. He rose to become its Chief Sub Editor and each day, after very early starts, he had to juggle many editions and multiple page changes.
Roger took all these talents to the MoS where, as at the Standard, he was known for brilliant, sharp headlines and an acute news sense, as well as a quirky, popular personality.
He was widely regarded as one of the finest Fleet Street production journalists of his generation.
He met his Welsh future wife Bethan in the 1980s and they had four children, now grown up – Rhys, Hannah, Gruff and Ela, who were a great delight to him. All four at various times went to a tiny, Welsh- speaking primary school in West London.
Roger left the MoS in 2002 and retired. The family moved to West Wales and the beautiful surroundings of New Quay in Ceredigion, an area well known to Dylan Thomas. Roger l oved his new home – his son Rhys said last week it was his ‘happy place’.
In retirement, Roger became a published author of several nonfiction books. The most notable was a collection of mnemonics – easy ways to help remember interesting facts, many of them amassed during his 25 years in Fleet Street. He called the typically eccentric book, which included illustrations by the MoS’s resident cartoonist Michael Heath, It’ll Come In Useful One Day – one of his mother’s favourite sayings.
Former Mail on Sunday Editor Peter Wright said: ‘Roger was a great Night Editor, and like all great Night Editors he was never afraid to tell Editors when they were getting it wrong.
‘My abiding memory of my early days as Editor is of Roger sitting next to me on the backbench, muttering “Editor’s making the paper late again”. He was absolutely right, of course. However good the splash headline was, it was no use if the papers left the printers so late they didn’t reach the newsagents.
‘ Roger was not only a much loved colleague, but a true oldschool professional.’
Roger died of natural causes in hospital in Carmarthen. His family were with him. A private cremation service will be held in the next few weeks, followed soon after by an open-to-all interment service at the tiny St Ina’s church next to the family’s home.