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The photographer B. Harris, who has died aged 73 from cancer, ended his schooling at 16 to become a messenger boy, and went on to become among the most esteemed UK photojournalists of his era.

A Global Career

He journeyed the world as a freelance or a staffer for major British publications, covering major happenings including the fall of the Berlin Wall, famine in Ethiopia and Sudan, the conflict in Northern Ireland, war zones in the Balkan region and throughout Africa, the aftermath of the Falklands war and several US election campaigns. Additionally, he produced lyrical scenic views of the countryside around his home county of Essex home.

According to his estimates he took over two million photographs, taking an average of 100 a day, but he stated that figure several years ago. He kept sharing historical and new images daily on social media until a short time before his passing, and had been planning to give a talk on his career and experiences.

Memorable Projects

Stories from a rollercoaster career included an costly business class flight in 1991 to reach the funeral in India of the slain politician Rajiv Gandhi, where he fainted from sunstroke and pneumonia and was treated with ice that had been used to preserve the body.

His 1983 images of the at that time Labour party leader Neil Kinnock with his wife, Glenys, falling into the sea on Brighton beach were carried across multiple columns of a front page, and are regularly reproduced as a striking example of photo-opportunity hubris. His 2016’s memoir, ... And Then the Prime Minister Hit Me, took the title from an irritated John Major striking him with a rolled-up briefing paper.

Professional Milestones

He was appointed as the a major newspaper’s most youthful staff photographer when he joined the paper in 1976, at the age of 26, and was based around the world for almost ten years, including coverage of the end of the civil war in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He eventually resigned over what he considered censorship of his most powerful images of starvation in Africa.

In 1986 Harris was made head photographer as the team was assembled to launch a new newspaper. He played a key role in forming the style of journalistic photography that the paper became known for, helping set new standards for news photography and newspaper design, in striking images covering front and back pages. Among numerous awards, he was honoured as the industry-recognised photographer of the year in 1990 for his work in eastern Europe documenting the collapse of communism.

He worked as a freelance after being made redundant in 1999, and significant projects after that included a year spent capturing cemeteries across the world in 2006 for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, which led to an display launched in London – where he gave a private viewing to Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh – and a emotional book, Remembered.

Early Life and Start

Harris was born in eastern London, to Dorothy and Leonard Harris, an electrician who later assisted him construct a photo lab in the garage. In the mid 1950s, the family moved farther east – and up in the world – to the Rise Park estate in Romford, Essex. Brian went to a local secondary modern school, learning practical skills in woodwork and metalwork, before departing at 16.

At a Fleet Street agency, he rose rapidly from messenger boy to photographer, and launched his working life at east London local papers before progressing to national publications.

Colleagues and Legacy

Other photographers, often outpaced by him, recalled his work as remarkable. A colleague, who collaborated with him in the initial stages, described him as “a superb and fearless photographer”, an inspiration to a cohort of young colleagues. Another associate, a union representative, said he “reimagined the possibilities of news photography during newspapers’ peak era”.

Personal Life

In 2001 Harris made contact through a website with Nikki Bertroya, whom he had first met as a toddler in primary school, and they became close companions through his remaining years. After receiving his terminal diagnosis, they embarked on a road trip in Europe, posting sunny images of good meals and quality drinks, and returning to important sites including Dresden and Ypres.

His final project, finished a few weeks before his death, was to donate his extensive collection of 55 years’ work to a long-term repository. Among his favourite historical photos he commented on a youthful Harris drinking generous servings of wine with the actor Helen Mirren: “What a fortunate life I’ve had – no regrets and no ‘Must Do’s’”.

He was wed twice, each union concluded with divorce.

He is survived by Nikki, his son Jacob, from his later union, Nikki’s daughter, Holly, and by his sister, Jan.