Comments on: Michael Shapiro, from Stepney to Peking

By: John Gerson

John Gerson — Wed, 07 Sep 2016 16:12:37 +0000

Fascinating. He’s easily confused with another man: Sidney Shapiro, also a Jewish communist who threw in his lot with the regime in China. I’m researching a book on the prison (Qincheng) where Michael served 5 years of solitary confinement. His fellow prisoners included David Crook, who as an agent of the Russian OGPU was assigned to kidnap George Orwell in Barcelona during the Spanish civil war – but failed – and many other loyal communists and prominent figures who fell foul of the endless power struggle. It’s now full of senior corrupt officials…

I’l also look up the paper Neil Redfern mentions above.

John G

By: neil redfern

neil redfern — Mon, 14 Jul 2014 12:47:49 +0000

“Tim” might find my downloadable paper @ academia.edu useful (do a google search on “neil redfern academia”)

By: Tim

Tim — Sat, 07 Sep 2013 05:42:15 +0000

What source was used for this article? I’m interested in Michael Shapiro and have found almost no decent academic sources, memoirs or biographies of him outside of a few internet articles.

By: John Allan

John Allan — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:13:57 +0000

I read this article with interest, for although I was aware of Michael Shapiro’s early activities in the East End I knew next to nothing about his later life. The article does not mention radical group The Architects and Technician’s Organisation (ATO) of which he was a member and which is covered in some detail in my biography of the Russian architect Berthold Lubetkin – through whom I originally heard of Shapiro. (Ref. “Berthold Lubetkin – Architecture and the traditionof progress”, RIBA Publications, 1992, pp262 ff.) The ATO was deeply involved in the social and political struggles of the ‘thirties in relation to the housing problem and the practice’s of exploitative landlords. Incidentally Shapiro’s first wife Eileen Murray was secretary in Lubetkin’s architectural practice, Tecton, and is pictured on p.111 of my book.

Being able to access this piece and learn more of Michael Shapiro’s inspirational life and work is surely the Internet at its best, and a reassurance that he is emphatically NOT forgotten by history.

John Allan, 1st January 2012

By: Annette Albert

Annette Albert — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 07:26:18 +0000

The site has been left in very good hands. Annette