Carl Chinn

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Carl Chinn
DL
Chinn on 12 June 2011
Born (1956-09-06) 6 September 1956 (age 67)
Moseley, Birmingham
, England
Occupations
  • Historian
  • writer
  • radio presenter[1][2]
  • magazine editor
  • newspaper columnist[3][4]
  • media personality
Spouse
Kathleen Doyle
​
(m. 1978)​
Children4
Chinn's voice
On the significance of Birmingham's marketplaces
First published 7 September 2011
WebsiteCarl Chinn’s Brum[5]

Carl Steven Alfred Chinn

DL (born 6 September 1956) is an English historian, writer and broadcaster whose working life has been devoted to the study and popularisation of the city of Birmingham. He broadcast a programme on the BBC
from the mid-1990s focusing on Birmingham's history.

In 1990, he was contracted to lecture[6] at the University of Birmingham, where he subsequently became a full professor in 2002. During this year he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his "services to local history and to charities".[7][8]

Early life

Chinn was born at Sorrento Hospital in Moseley, Birmingham.[9] His father, Alfred (died 26 April 2010), was known as "Buck"[10] and was a notable football supporter and local activist[10] from Sparkbrook.[9] His mother, Sylvia, was known as "Sylvie"[10] and was from Aston.[9] Chinn grew up in Birmingham and was educated at Moseley School and the University of Birmingham.

Career

Chinn initially followed his father and grandfather into

academia, gaining his PhD in 1986.[11]

His work in the community made him a popular figure, and in 1994 he was invited by the

Birmingham Evening Mail to write a two-page feature on local history. This proved extremely popular and Chinn wrote a weekly column for the paper until 2016.[11]

Chinn held the position of Professor of Community History at the

BBC WM from 1994 until it was axed in 2013. He has made three videos and provided spoken links on two CDs of songs about Birmingham.[11]

In 2000 Chinn was a leading figure in the temporarily successful, but eventually doomed, campaign to save the

Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) "for services to the community, especially Local History, in the West Midlands."[9][12] When the rebuilt Bull Ring was opened in 2003 Chinn criticised it for the lack of concern its developers and planners had shown towards market traders who had been the mainstay of the Bull Ring for the 800 years up to 1964, when the much-criticised previous shopping centre was built on the site.[13] Chinn has also been prominent in the campaigns to save the last back-to-back houses in Birmingham, now a National Trust museum in Inge Street; and for a memorial to the victims of the Second World War Blitz on the city, sited in Edgbaston Street in the Bull Ring. In October 2007 he became patron of the St John's Church Preservation Group, which is[needs update] campaigning for the reopening of St John's Church, Dudley.[14]

In December 2010 he appeared on

Question Time
.

Politics

In the 1980s he was briefly a member of the

Birmingham Sparkbrook as an independent, campaigning for import controls to protect local industry, and more investment in council housing. He came last with 281 votes (0.9%).[15]

Personal life

Chinn married Kathleen Doyle in 1978; they have a son and three daughters, one of whom, Tara, has sung professionally on stage with her father.[16]

Chinn is a supporter of Aston Villa FC[16] and has a season ticket at Villa Park.

Chinn is a descendant of Peaky Blinders gangster Edward Derrick.[17] In 2023, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of the West Midlands.[18]

Bibliography

References

  1. expressandstar.com
    . Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  2. expressandstar.com
    . Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  3. ^ birmingham mail articles by Carl Chinn
  4. ^ express and star articles by Carl Chinn
  5. ^ "Welcome". Carl Chinn’s Brum. Archived from the original on 1 February 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  6. ^ "Professor Carl Chinn axed from university history post". Express & Star. Wolverhampton, England. 17 January 2015. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  7. ^ Griffin, Jon (15 January 2015). "Carl Chinn's sadness as his University of Birmingham role is axed". birminghammail. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  8. ^ Tom Bushnell (5 January 2011), "BBC WM Radio Carl Chinn MBE & Tom Bushnell talk about the psychology of New Year Re-solutions", YouTube, archived from the original on 13 December 2021, retrieved 29 December 2017
  9. ^ a b c d e "Professor Carl Chinn". University of Birmingham. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  10. ^ a b c "Buck Chinn loses fight against cancer". Birmingham Mail. 27 April 2010. Archived from the original on 25 September 2012. Retrieved 29 April 2010.
  11. ^ a b c d e "BBC – BBC WM Programmes – Carl Chinn". BBC. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  12. ^ United Kingdom "No. 56237". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 16 June 2001. p. 15.
  13. ^ "Historian says Bullring lacks heart". BBC News. 4 September 2003.
  14. ^ "Save St John's Church". St John's Church Preservation Group. Archived from the original on 9 May 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2012.
  15. Parliament.uk
    . Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  16. ^ a b Brummies (video), Carl Chinn & Malcolm Stent, Pennslake Productions, 1995
  17. The Science Survey. Bronx High School of Science
    . Retrieved 10 April 2022.
  18. ^ "West Midlands Lieutenancy – Deputy Lieutenant Commissions". The London Gazette. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 31 March 2023.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Carl_Chinn&oldid=1217568693"