Mervyn Matthews

William Haydn Mervyn Matthews (July 25, 1932 – November 26, 2017) was a British expert on Soviet society, writer, and broadcaster.

He was born in Swansea and his early years are described in his 2002 memoir ''Mervyn's Lot''. He took a degree in Russian at Manchester University, then moved to St Catherine's College, Oxford, then St Antony's College for work on his Ph.D.

The story of his love with his future wife from the Soviet Union (see "Family") cost him carrier. He was accepted as a research fellow at Moscow University, but expelled from the Soviet Union in 1964 for "anti-Soviet propaganda and speculation". ("speculation") is a Russian term for profiteering. This refers to an episode when KGB caught Matthews when he tried to sell a sweater to a friend. }} St Antony's College annulled his research fellowship for political troublemaking, after which he moved to Nottingham University. He eventually settled as reader in the University of Surrey's linguistic and regional studies department. Provided by Wikipedia