Journalist and author John Bryant who held senior roles at the Daily Mail, The Times and The Telegraph over four decades and was pivotal in success of the London marathon dies aged 76
- Mr Bryant died at his Surrey home on Thursday after a long battle with illness
- He was the Mail’s featured editor among other roles across a 40-year career
- He ran in 29 London marathons, many of which came after he was hit by a car
Journalist and author John Bryant, who held senior roles at newspapers including the Daily Mail and played a pivotal role in the success of the London Marathon, has died.
He passed away peacefully at his home in Surrey on Thursday following a long battle with illness, aged 76.
Mr Bryant was one of the UK’s most esteemed newsmen, having served as the Mail’s features editor, as editor-in-chief of The Daily Telegraph and managing editor of The Times throughout his career which spanned more than four decades.
John Bryant, pictured left, passed away peacefully at his home in Surrey on Thursday following a long battle with illness, aged 76. He is pictured right in training for the first ever London Marathon in 1981
He also left an indelible mark on UK athletics, having played a key role in the evolution of the London Marathon.
Mr Bryant fell in love with running as a child in the village of Haselbury Plucknet, Somerset, when he was able to catch up to the school bus as it was driving through the village.
While studying law at Oxford University, Mr Bryant was captain of the cross-country running club and represented British Universities on the track.
Mr Bryant, pictured left, and Nigel Dempster, pictured right, train for the big run in their time working for the Daily Mail
Mr Bryant played a key role in the evolution of the London Marathon after it was first introduced in 1981, pictured
The journalist and author, pictured right alongside Lord Jeffrey Archer in 2004, participated in 29 London marathons
The 76-year-old, pictured in his Daily Mail days, is survived by his wife, Carol, two sons, Matthew and William and six grandchildren
He continued to run throughout his adulthood and published his first book on the subject, Jogging, in 1979.
He went on to write several more books on running – the most famous of which was 3:59.4, which detailed Roger Bannister’s quest to break the four-minute mile.
After developing a close friendship with Chris Brasher, founder of the London Marathon, Mr Bryant would go on to play a part in developing the event into the global institution that it is today.
He also participated in 29 London marathons, many of which came after he was hit by a car during a training run and told he would not walk again.
Mr Bryant began his journalism career at the Edinburgh Evening News, going on to hold senior positions at a number of UK national newspapers and becoming chair of the Press Association Trust in 2008.
Friends and colleagues have paid tribute to him on social media after news of his death broke.
Catherine Bentley, head of digital news at the Telegraph, wrote: ‘I’m truly saddened to hear of the passing of John Bryant, late of the Tel, Times and Mail. A kind man who brought me to Fleet Street as the first ever Daily Mail subs trainee and personally ensured that I was looked after, happy and settled there. I owe my career to him.’
Kat Storr added: ‘So sad to hear about the death of the wonderful journalist and super marathon runner John Bryant. He was a family friend and I have lovely memories of drinking Champagne with him in our garden in Dorset as he told us about how he was still running over the cliffs in his 70s!’
Mr Bryant is survived by his wife, Carol, two sons, Matthew and William and six grandchildren.