Jamie Blackett (writer)

Jamie Blackett (born 1964) is a Scottish politician, author and freelance columnist, with articles appearing in The Daily Telegraph,[1] The Spectator[2] and other publications.[3]

Jamie Blackett
BornJames William Beauchamp Blackett
(1964-10-17) 17 October 1964
OccupationWriter, farmer, retired Army Officer
NationalityBritish
Alma materEton College
Notable worksThe Enigma of Kidson, Red Rag to a Bull, Rural Life in an Urban Age
SpouseSheralyn
ChildrenTwo

His latest book, Red Rag to a Bull, Rural Life in an Urban Age [4] tells how he arrived home from the Army to take over Arbigland, a small family estate on the Solway Firth in Dumfries and Galloway to find a rapidly changing countryside. Set over 20 years through the Scottish independence referendum, hunting ban, and Brexit, the book covers challenges threatening a way of life and an emerging rural philosophy in which farmers have greater freedom to manage the countryside.

Although he writes mainly about rural matters, Blackett’s first book The Enigma of Kidson (Quiller 2017),[5] is a partly autobiographical portrait of teacher Michael Kidson whose pupils at Eton College included former Prime Minister David Cameron. It is currently being adapted for the stage by playwright Henry Filloux-Bennett.

In it, Blackett describes being beaten by the Head, Michael McCrum, one of the last acts of corporal punishment at the school.

Blackett served in the Coldstream Guards from 1983 to 2002, including service in The Troubles and the first Gulf War. In addition, Blackett served as Deputy Lieutenant for Dumfriesshire from 2013 to 2020. Blackett has been a member of the Royal Company of Archers since 2012.

In 2020, Blackett became the Deputy Leader of the Alliance 4 Unity party, which was founded by George Galloway to contest the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.[6][7] The registered name of the party became All For Unity, with Blackett as the Leader and Galloway as the Nominating Officer.[8]

Blackett is a direct descendant of Christopher Blackett of Wylam Hall, Northumberland, founder of The Globe[9] newspaper and entrepreneur behind the world’s oldest surviving steam engine Puffing Billy.

References
  1. Blackett, Jamie. "Struggling farmers have been abandoned by the Government". The Telegraph. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  2. Blackett, Jamie. "Beware the Rise of US Beef". The Spectator. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  3. Blackett, Jamie. "How farming has fallen from 'no finer investment' to fighting for its future". Country Life. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  4. Redrup, Gemma. "Oh God this is going to hurt". Horse and Hound. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  5. Schofield, Carey. "'The Enigma of Kidson: The Portrait of an Eton Schoolmaster', by Jamie Blackett, with a Foreword by Sir Matthew Pinsent - Review". Questia. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  6. Duffy, Judith (23 August 2020). "Deputy chief of George Galloway's Unionist party in astonishing anti-SNP rant". The National. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  7. "Deputy Leader Jamie Blackett calls for a "Clarity Act"". Scotland Today. 22 September 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  8. The Electoral Commission
  9. "Globe". British Newspaper Archive. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
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