Background
Born in London, Whitfield was the younger son of John Henry Christopher Whitfield and his wife Louisa (née Farren).
Born in London, Whitfield was the younger son of John Henry Christopher Whitfield and his wife Louisa (née Farren).
He was educated at Archbishop Tenison"s Grammar School, University College School, and at Vienna and London universities.
He at first worked in Vienna but in his early twenties his sight began to deteriorate. This forced him to prepare for a new vocation, which led him into a career as a violinist. He made his professional soloist debut in 1913, by then almost completely blind.
He then took up the study of economics, political science and philosophy, and obtained a Bachelor of Science in 1926 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 1928.
The latter year he was elected to the Executive Council of the National Institute for the Blind. In 1935 he injured a hand and was forced to abandon his music career.
During the Second World War Whitfield worked for the blind in the United States and Canada, and after the war he was Governor of the British Broadcasting Corporation from 1946 to 1950. In 1951 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Kenswood, of Street Marylebone in the County of London.
Between 1951 and 1955 he served as President National Institute for the Blind.
Lord Kenswood married, firstly, Sophie Madeline, only child of Ernest Walter Howard.