Obituary - Compton Ifill

04 January 2010

The Birmingham Post’s former supplements editor, better known as Mac, passed away in his sleep a few hours into the New Year after a long illness. He had been a member of the Press Club.

Mac, who was born in Georgetown, Guyana, was a journalist of the old school. Editorial integrity was his mantra – and he would never hesitate to use it to full effect.

He was a modest man with a military background which he rarely talked about even though he spent years behind the barbed wire of a prisoner-of-war camp. He had also been a farmer.

He made his mark in Birmingham, joining The Birmingham Post in the final stages of a career which included editing papers in Wimbledon, Leamington, a spell on New Scientist and a host of other positions. He became supplements editor of The Post in the early 1990s.

Mac retired from the Birmingham Post aged 66. He would have been 74 on his next birthday. He lived in Warwick and is survived by his wife, four children and 11 grandchildren.

Former colleague Steve Pain said: “To cross Mac was to experience volcanic wrath. Wrath based on decades of experience in a profession he loved.

“He was in turn considerate, stern, kind and, if truth be told, a bit of a bastard to work with. A true professional. There can be no greater praise than that.”

Philip Parkin, operations director of Birmingham Press Club and a long time friend and colleague of Mac, said: "I was proud to know Mac - we got on very well, perhaps it was because of a few shared interests, including Apple computers and London Pride, both of which he was passionate about!

“But then,  Mac was incredibly passionate about all of the things that interested him, not least journalism, where he always strived for (and reached) the highest standards - it was this approach that helped him during the 1990s, when he re-shaped the supplements department of the 'Post'. He probably did more than anyone to ensure its survival into the next century. I could say a lot more about Mac - but above all, he was a good friend, and will be sadly missed."

Press Club chairman John Lamb added: “As a former assistant editor on the Birmingham Post, I knew Mac as an irascible colleague and dedicated habitué of several watering holes. I will miss him on both counts.”