 In 1968 he succeeded Timothy Raison, the first editor of "New Society", and edited the magazine until 1986.Subsequently, he was a columnist for "The Sunday Times" and a regular writer for the London "Evening Standard," "The Times Literary Supplement" and "Prospect" magazine.He was awarded a research fellowship by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 for his work on suburbia which laid the foundation for his book; "The Freedoms of Suburbia" (Frances Lincoln, 2009).