I was very lucky that from an early age (about eight-years-old) I knew that journalism, media and any form of writing was the career I wanted to be in. Every morning I’d devour my parents’ newspapers from cover to cover, watch all the news I could on TV and even created my own little magazine … but for the life of me can’t recall the name of it.
One of the columns I really enjoyed was written by Nigel Dempster. He was a renowned British journalist, author, broadcaster and diarist best known for his celebrity gossip columns in newspapers. His work appeared in the Daily Express and Daily Mail and also in Private Eye magazine.
Paul Dacre, the former editor of the Daily Mail, was reported as saying: "His scoops were the stuff of legend and his zest for life inexhaustible." I wanted to be Nigel.
So, around the age of 14 I composed a nice hand-written letter (no e-mail back then) to Mr. Dempster c/o Daily Mail asking if I could maybe pop by and say hello. I thought it would be great to meet the writer whose work I admired and maybe pick up some tips for a young, aspiring journo.
I heard nothing back for a few weeks so was a little disappointed that maybe my letter hadn’t even made it to his desk, or he was just too plain busy as the most celebrated gossip columnist of his time, hanging out with celebrities, politicians and socialites of the day. Oh well, was worth a try!
But lo and behold, a week later on our front doormat was an envelope addressed to “John Carson, Jnr.” — my dad’s name was John too so I signed off as Jnr. to avoid opening his mail — with the Daily Mail logo on it.
I tore it open very quickly and it was indeed a reply from Nigel Dempster. Even better, it was an invitation to spend the day at his Daily Mail office in London, penned by the man himself. I was ecstatic and very excited.
So about a month later I was on a British Rail train heading to “The Big Smoke” to meet Nigel at his office.
His personal assistant met me and we went to Nigel’s office, which was in an open plan room along with other journalists. I remember he had his desk right by the window looking out on the busy hustle and bustle of London life. It was very exciting for me to be in the thick of the action.
Nigel himself greeted me and was extremely charming and kind. He pulled up a chair and I sat next to him, reading some of his column items for the next day’s edition and just soaking up the experience, which I knew then was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
We talked about journalism and what it was like to work for a major news organization, how he got some of his story tips, people he had met and so on. Nigel was extremely well connected and seemed to be in the perfect role for his time as Fleet Street’s king of gossip.
The day flew by but I never forgot the experience and how it solidified my choice to carve out a media career, one I’ve really enjoyed being in since 1995.
More importantly, I fondly recall how kind Nigel was and how respectfully he treated me. He was a very busy man and didn’t have to go out of his way, but I’m glad he did. He taught me that in any career, you should make time for those who need it … you never know how it will affect people and how it helps.
Sadly, he died in 2007 and I never had the chance to thank him properly, something I regret. This is my belated little personal tribute to him that has been a long time coming.
Nigel Dempster photo courtesy of Eric Hands.