Keith Roy Waite (19 March 1927, in New Plymouth, New Zealand – 10 April 2014, in Ipswich, United Kingdom) was a New Zealand-born editorial cartoonist. He has been referred to as one of the 'greatest-ever social and political cartoonists' in Britain.[1]
At the age of nine, Waite won a newspaper cartoon competition.[2] He has been quoted as saying "I just knew from an early age that I wanted to be a cartoonist".[3] His interest in art continued and he attended Elam School of Fine Arts, as well as Auckland Teacher Training College.[2] After teaching for a year, he returned to Elam while working as a free-lance cartoonist for the Taranaki Daily News, the Auckland Weekly News and the New Zealand Herald.[4] He took up a position at the Otago Daily Times as a staff cartoonist in 1949.[4]
In 1951, Waite moved to the United Kingdom contributing to a number of publications including the Sunday Times, the Glasgow Daily Record, The Scottish Daily News, Punch (1952-1964), and Men Only magazine.[2] Between 1957 and 1964 he worked as the chief political cartoonist for the Daily Sketch in London, producing up to three cartoons a day.[2][5] He continued to work for London-based publications, including the Sun (1964–69), the Daily Mirror (1969–85), the Sunday Mirror (1970–80) and the City Diary of The Times (1987-1997).[2] He was made Cartoonist of the Year in 1963 by the Cartoonists' Club of Great Britain.[2]