The President of the Republic, Marcelo de Rebelo de Sousa, has expressed condolences to the family of Henrique de Penha Coutinho, a prominent political columnist in the late 1970s and early 1980s press.
The columnist and journalist Henrique de Penha Coutinho, known by his pseudonym Manuel de Portugal, passed away on Monday at the age of 96, as confirmed by a family friend.
Active in the 1980s and 1990s, Manuel de Portugal—Henrique Maria Cordeiro de Penha Coutinho—was born in Lisbon on October 1, 1928.
The Portuguese columnist and journalist gained fame in the 1970s with his weekly columns in the now-defunct newspaper Tempo.
His columns were notable during the PREC—Portugal’s Revolutionary Process in Progress—an era of political and social instability following April 25, 1974.
In a note sent by his grandson António Rolo Duarte, the family noted that Manuel de Portugal stood out as a political columnist and a leading figure in right-wing press after the April 25 Revolution.
In a 1976 article, renowned journalist Peixe Dias described him as “the chronicler par excellence of the Revolution.”
His columns, known for their critical and emotive style, defined the tumultuous post-revolution period in Portugal.
“Attentive to abuses of power, Manuel de Portugal played a significant role in public debate as a defender of democratic institutions and values,” stated his family.
Alongside Vera Lagoa, “his friend and collaborator,” he was a leading figure at the newspaper Tempo, authoring a weekly column on page 3 for years, the note added.
He later contributed to O Diabo and Jornal da Madeira, also writing for Portuguese diaspora newspapers, especially in the United States.
The Chronicles of Manuel de Portugal, Volumes I and II, collections of his articles published by Ulisseia, “were bestsellers in Portugal,” the family also noted.
The wake for Henrique de Penha Coutinho is today from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM, and on Wednesday from 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM, at the Igreja São de Deus in Praça de Londres, Lisbon.
The funeral will proceed on Wednesday at 3:00 PM to the Alto de São João cemetery where his body will be cremated, according to the columnist’s daughter, Cristina Coutinho.
