Sir Richard Phillips

Sir Richard Phillips (1767-1840) founded the Leicester Herald in 1792, and the next year was convicted of selling and printing seditious materials. He was released in 1795, after which his house in Leicester burned, forcing him to seek refuge for a time with the Coltmans of St. Nicholas Street prior to his removal to London (Coltman, “Time’s Stepping Stones,” 3: ch. 21). He settled in London at the end of 1795 and commenced publication of the Monthly Magazine, a popular literary vehicle for London’s radicals; he also operated a printing business and bookshop in St. Paul’s Churchyard, next door to the Unitarian bookseller, Joseph Johnson. He was the primary publisher for the early works of Mary Hays, including her Female Biography (6 vols, 1803).