Wendy Henry

Wendy Henry is a former journalist and newspaper editor.

Early life

Wendy moved with her twin sister Sara from her mother's house in St Annes on Sea to Manchester in the late 1960s to live with their father, a Jewish market trader. By the age of eighteen, she had a child.

In their youth, Henry and her sister were active socialists, joining the International Socialists and later the International-Communist League. In 1972, she was given an absolute discharge after being accused of attempting to throw a carton of milk at Edward Heath when he visited Salford. Her involvement in radical activism at the University of Manchester was spotted by Brian Whittle, Brian Taylor and Peter Reece, who took her on at the Manchester News Service.

Career in journalism

In the 1970s, Henry had a six-month trial with the Daily Mail, but was not given a permanent position. She worked as a freelance before joining the features department of the News of the World, then became features editor of Woman. She then became serialisation editor of The Sun, followed by a stint as woman's editor, then assistant editor (features). According to Roy Greenslade, during the Falklands War, when she heard that the General Belgrano had been sunk, she joked "Gotcha", which was used by editor Kelvin MacKenzie as a the Sun headline. In 1983, she was suspended for two weeks after fabricating an interview with Falklands veteran Simon Weston. She was the first journalist to report that Princess Margaret was having a relationship with Roddy Llewellyn.