Ralph Critchfield

Sad news from Britain has reached me that longstanding Socialist Party of Great Britain member, Ralph Critchfield,  died this past Thursday at the age of 93. 

If his name is not immediately familiar to readers of the blog ('Ralph Critchfield' only has 15 mentions on the blog), that is only because that for many decades he wrote under the pen-name of 'Ivan' in the pages of the Socialist Standard. 

At the time of writing there are over 500 entries for 'Ivan' on the blog. The earliest Socialist Standard piece penned by 'Ivan' on the blog dates from December 1949, and his final article in the pages of the Socialist Standard appeared in the April 2018 issue. That 2018 article was the last in a long line of Greasy Pole columns - dealing with the day-to-day circus of British politics - which appeared nearly every month for over 20 years. I also understand that he was on the editorial committee of the Socialist Standard for a number of years, and that he was a parliamentary candidate for the SPGB at the October 1974 (in Hampstead) and 1979 (in Islington South and Finsbury) General Elections.

A very fine writer and speaker for Socialism over many decades, his obituary will appear in a future issue of the Socialist Standard.