Parker, Derek, 1932-

British author, editor, journalist, and critic.

Derek Parker, critic, interviewer, author, and editor, was born in Looe, Cornwall, England, in 1932. He attended schools in England until the age of seventeen. Parker describes himself as primarily a journalistic hack with perhaps a flair for interpreting the poetry of others; an occasional poet, an editor with widely catholic tastes.

Parker is a prolific writer and has been published in many forms, including verse, essays, and monographs, but he is perhaps best known for his work with the British Broadcasting Corporation and for his career as an editor. He has edited anthologies of poetry, letters, and journals, including Poetry Review (1966-1970) and The Author (1986-).

The Poetry Review is the official journal of the Poetry Society which was founded in 1909 to promote poetry, and publishes poetry, critical essays on poetry and poetics, and reviews. Derek Parker assumed editorship in 1966, and under his guidance, the journal published work by poets such as W. H. Auden, Robert Graves, John Heath-Stubbs, and Hugh MacDiarmid. Members of the Poetry Society who were active during Parker's editorship include: Presidents Neville Coghill and William Plomer; Vice Presidents Robert Armstrong, Sir John Betjeman, Sir Francis Meynell, and Margaret Rawlings; and Chairmen Geoffrey Handly-Taylor and Norman Hidden.

During his tenure as editor of the Poetry Review, Parker was involved in several other literary activities, including his editorship with John Lehmann of Selected Letters of Edith Sitwell (1970), his contributions to Contemporary Poets of the English Language and Liberté, and his British Broadcasting Corporation interview programs.

Since leaving the Poetry Review, Parker has been active in other literary ventures, often collaborating with his wife, Julia Louise Parker.

Throughout his career, Parker has been involved in many literary and artistic societies. He has been a member of the Radiowriter's Association, has served on the council of the Society of Authors, on the grand council of the Royal Academy of Dancing, and as registrar of the Royal Literary Fund.