Hugo Rifkind

Hugo Rifkind
Born	(1977-03-30) March 30, 1977 Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Occupation(s)	Journalist, columnist, radio presenter, author
Years active	2002–present
Known for	Columnist for The Times; presenter on Times Radio; panelist on BBC Radio 4's The News Quiz
Notable work	Overexposure (2006), My Week: The Secret Diaries of Almost Everyone (2013), Rabbits (2024)

Hugo James Rifkind (born 30 March 1977) is a British journalist and columnist who has contributed to The Times since 2005. Starting September 2024, he will host a mid-morning programme on Times Radio, having previously presented the station’s Saturday morning show from its inception in July 2020 until September 2024. Since 2008, Rifkind has also frequently appeared as a panelist on The News Quiz broadcast on BBC Radio 4.

Early life and education

Rifkind was born in Edinburgh to Sir Malcolm Rifkind, a Conservative politician, and Edith, whose father was Joseph Steinberg, a Jewish Polish airforce engineer. He attended independent schools including Loretto School in Musselburgh and George Watson's College. Subsequently, he pursued philosophy at Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

Career in journalism

Rifkind’s journalism career commenced as an editorial assistant at Peoplenews.com before moving into freelance roles for publications such as The Times, the Evening Standard, and writing a column for The Herald between 2002 and 2005. He officially joined The Times in 2005, succeeding Andrew Pierce as the author of the gossip column known as "People."

Within The Times, Rifkind contributes a Thursday opinion column alongside a Saturday satirical diary titled "My Week." From 2007 until 2017, he wrote a biweekly column for The Spectator, presenting a liberal and pro-European viewpoint that often contrasted with the magazine’s conservative editorial line. Additionally, he produces a monthly column for GQ and regularly appears on BBC Radio 4’s satirical quiz show The News Quiz. During the 2015 general election, he hosted Campaign Sidebar, a political review programme on BBC Radio 4. His first novel, Overexposure, a satirical farce centered on London’s media scene, was published in 2007. This was followed by a compilation of his columns entitled My Week: The Secret Diaries Of Almost Everyone in 2013. His second novel, Rabbits, described as blending elements of Iain Banks with The Secret History, was released in 2024.

Rifkind has been recognized with several accolades: Columnist of the Year (2011) and Media Commentator of the Year (2012) at the Editorial Intelligence Comment Awards; highly commended for Best of Humour at the Society of Editors' Press Awards (2012); Stonewall’s Journalist of the Year (2012) for his advocacy of equal marriage; Best Grooming Journalist at the P&G Beauty Awards (2012); Arts, Culture and Entertainment Commentator of The Year (2015); and both Best of Humour and Critic of the Year at the Society of Editors' Press Awards (2017).

In 2014, Rifkind was among approximately 200 public figures who signed an open letter published in The Guardian supporting Scotland’s continued membership within the United Kingdom during the independence referendum.

A notable incident occurred in a 2011 column for The Times, where Rifkind revealed that he had deliberately added false information about Queen Victoria to Wikipedia, which was subsequently reported as fact by several national newspapers.

In 2019, Rifkind presented the BBC Radio 4 series Hugo Rifkind's Search for Power. He began hosting Times Radio’s Saturday morning show upon its launch in July 2020 and expanded his role to include a Monday to Thursday mid-morning slot starting September 2024.

Books

• Overexposure (2006)
• My Week: The Secret Diaries of Almost Everyone (2013)
• Rabbits (2024)

External links

• Collection of Hugo Rifkind’s writings on TimesOnline
• Hugo Rifkind’s author page at The Spectator