Sir John Maddox: Editor of Nature

Sir John Maddox combined a comprehensive knowledge of science with a fluent pen; talents that made him the foremost scientific journalist and editor of his era. As Editor of Nature, he restored the journal to an unchallenged position as the place to publish interesting research quickly, and did so at a time when Britain’s influence in world science was otherwise declining. His judgments, sometimes quirky but never dull, were always backed by persuasive argument and a sense of humour.