Lord Michael Pratt

Lord Michael John Henry Pratt (15 August 1946 – 3 September 2007) was a scion of the British aristocracy. An eccentric, he is best known as the author of several historical books.

Birth and ancestors Michael Pratt was born at Bayham, near Lamberhurst in Kent, the younger son of John Charles Henry Pratt, 5th Marquess Camden, and his second wife, Averil Streatfield. The Pratt family were lawyers and politicians, and became wealthy through large property holdings, particularly in Camden Town, although the last properties in London were sold circa 1946.

Obituaries His obituaries variously describe him as a "brainy buffoon", "Wodehouseian", with an unmistakable physical appearance, often wearing a three-piece suit with pink or purple socks and highly polished co-respondent shoes, topped by an untidy hat. He was described as being unlucky with cars, having been involved in several accidents, and accident-prone with guns. Nor was he adept at running baths. A commentator in The Guardian described the obituary as the "least hagiographic obit ever published in the Telegraph." Other obituaries, notably in The Times and The Independent, stressed his generosity, good humour and wide circle of friends. A number of letters to the editor of The Daily Telegraph included one published on 11 September, which described the obituary as "mean-spirited", "in a number of respects, false", "a travesty of the truth", and "wicked" resulting in an apology some days later following a series of protests to the Editor from his many friends.