M. H. Holcroft

Monte H. Holcroft
Born	Montague Harry Holcroft 14 May 1902 Rangiora, New Zealand
Died	24 September 1993 (aged 91) Rangiora, New Zealand
Occupation	Writer, editor, and journalist
Spouse	Eileen Allanah McLean, Aralia Jaslie Seldon Dale, Lorna Mildred Taylor
Children	Allan (deceased), Anthony, Jocelyn

Montague Harry "Monte" Holcroft OBE (14 May 1902 – 24 September 1993) was a New Zealand essayist and novelist.^[1]

Early life and family

Holcroft was the second of three sons, born in Rangiora on 14 May 1902 to Harry Cooper Holcroft and Harriet Emily Soanes. He was married three times and had three children, Allan Holcroft (deceased) from his first marriage and is survived by two children from his second marriage, Anthony Holcroft and Jocelyn Rimmington.

Life

In 1936, Holcroft began writing for the Southland Times. In 1949, Holcroft was offered the editorship of the New Zealand Listener in Wellington. He became the longest-serving editor of the New Zealand Listener.

He helped found the New Zealand branch of UNESCO.^[2]

Awards

• 1947 Hubert Church Award
• 1970 Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

Works

Novels

• Beyond the Breakers, John Long, 1928
• The Flameless Fire, John Long, 1931^[3]
• Brazilian Daughter John Long, 1931

Essays

• The village transformed: aspects of change in New Zealand, 1900-1990. Victoria University Press. 1990. ISBN 978-0-86473-210-1.
• A voice in the village: the Listener editorials of M.H. Holcroft. Silver Fern Books. 1989. ISBN 978-0-908792-04-7.
• New Zealand: Essay by M.H. Holcroft. Illustrators Kenneth Bigwood, Jean Bigwood. Reed. 1966.
• Encircling seas: an essay by M. H. Holcroft. The Caxton Press. 1946.
• The Deepening Stream: Cultural Influences in New Zealand (1940)

Memoir

• The way of a writer, Volume 1. Cape Catley. 1984. ISBN 978-0-908561-17-9.
• A sea of words: volume two of an autobiography. Cape Catley. 1986. ISBN 978-0-908561-15-5.

Anthology

• Discovered Isles: a Trilogy : The Deepening Stream, The Waiting Hills, Encircling Seas. Christchurch: Caxton Press, 1950. Voyager link
• Timeless World : a Collection of Essays, Wellington: Progressive Publishing Society, 1945. Voyager link NZ Listener 323.13 Aug (1945): 12-13.

References

1. Andrew Mason. "Holcroft, Montague Harry". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, updated 30-Oct-2012.
2. Hamilton, Stephen (2008). "Montague Harry Holcroft, 1902 – 1993". Kōtare. 7 (2): 150–156.
3. Terry Sturm, ed. (1998). The Oxford history of New Zealand literature in English. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-558385-4.

External links

• "M.H. Holcroft", Literary Encyclopedia