Ronald Payne

For the Australian politician, see Ron Payne.

Ronald Staveley Payne, a.k.a. Ronnie Payne, (1926-2013) was a British journalist and war correspondent who focused on espionage and terrorism.

Ronald Payne was born on 6 February 1926 in Ripon, Yorkshire, England. His father was a Primitive Methodist minister.

Payne was educated at Pocklington Grammar School and Bedford School. During World War II, he served in the Royal Marines. He subsequently attended Jesus College, Oxford.

Payne began his career as a journalist at the Reading Mercury. He subsequently wrote for the London Evening Standard. In 1953, he joined the Daily Telegraph, first as a reporter and later as a foreign correspondent in Paris. He wrote about French Algeria and French Indochina. He also wrote about the Suez Crisis in 1956, and he interviewed Muammar Gaddafi in 1976.

Payne co-authored several books with Christopher Dobson. He was also the author of six non-fiction books about espionage or terrorism.

Payne was married three times. His third wife, Celia Haddon, was a journalist. They retired in Witney, Oxfordshire.

Payne died on 25 May 2013 in Witney.

• Payne, Ronald (1967). Private Spies. London: A. Barker. OCLC 2093100.
• Dobson, Christopher; Miller, John; Payne, Ronald (1976). The Cruelest Night. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. OCLC 6011500.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1977). The Carlos Complex: A Study in Terror. New York: Putnam. ISBN 9780399119033. OCLC 2998366.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1979). The Weapons of Terror: International Terrorism at Work. London: Macmillan. ISBN 9780333238738. OCLC 5350714.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1982). The Terrorists: Their Weapons, Leaders, and Tactics. New York: Facts on File. ISBN 9780871966681. OCLC 8171688.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1982). Counterattack: The West's Battle Against the Terrorists. New York: Facts on File. ISBN 9780871965264. OCLC 8220437.
• Dobson, Christopher; Miller, John; Payne, Ronald (1982). The Falklands Conflict. Falmouth, Cornwall: Coronet Books. ISBN 9780340324080. OCLC 9465217.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1984). The Dictionary of Espionage. London: Harrap. ISBN 9780245542015. OCLC 12806141.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1984). Who's Who in Espionage. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 9780312874322. OCLC 11650631.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1986). War Without End: The Terrorists: An Intelligence Dossier. London: Harrap. ISBN 9780245543548. OCLC 14288751.
• Dobson, Christopher; Payne, Ronald (1987). The Never-Ending War: Terrorism in the 80's. New York: Facts on File Publications. ISBN 9780816020560. OCLC 14357208.
• Payne, Ronald (1990). Mossad : Israel's Most Secret Service. London: Bantam. ISBN 9780593014431. OCLC 21411503.