Melvyn Marckus, who died last week aged 79, was this paper’s city editor from 1982 until 1993, during which time he made the Observer a must-read in City and business circles. He combined expert knowledge and an individual writing style with high-level contacts in the boardrooms of major companies and among City advisers, developed from previous roles at the Daily Mail and the Sunday Telegraph.
Those contacts produced headline-making revelations – such as the hubristic 1987 approach by admen Maurice and Charles Saatchi to merge with the then Midland Bank – along with the inside track on the bids and deals of the day.
Very much an old-school journalist, Marckus encouraged reporters to knock on doors and meet captains of industry, if possible socially, in the days before they retreated behind lawyers and image consultants.
There were investigations into mafia-linked share promoters and early exposés of later scandals such as Asil Nadir’s Polly Peck and the Bank of Credit & Commerce International (BCCI). His focus on business investigations often meant successfully fighting expensive libel actions.
He was centrally involved in coverage of the bitter battle over Harrods, after Mohamed Al Fayed outwitted Tiny Rowland of Lonrho, the Observer’s then owner, to acquire the London store. The 1990 official report confirmed that Fayed had exaggerated his wealth and misled regulators and the government over the 1985 purchase of the House of Fraser group, which owned Harrods.
After leaving in 1993 to become city editor of the Times for three years, Marckus subsequently became an adviser at a public relations consultancy.
