Julia Hartley-Brewer

Julia Hartley-Brewer
Born	(1968-05-02) May 2, 1968 United Kingdom
Occupation(s)	Political journalist, columnist, radio host
Years active	1990s–present
Known for	Hosting weekday program on Talkradio; political commentary and columns

Julia Hartley-Brewer (born 2 May 1968) is a British political journalist, columnist, and radio host. She currently presents a weekday program on Talkradio, which is also broadcast simultaneously on Talk, titled Julia Hartley-Brewer, airing at 10am.

Early life and education

Hartley-Brewer is the daughter of Michael John Hartley-Brewer, who stood as a Labour Party candidate for Selly Oak in the 1970 general election, and Valerie Forbes Hartley-Brewer, a general practitioner who qualified as a GP while raising two children following her parents' separation.

Her schooling included Oldfield Girls' Comprehensive School in Bath and Woodhouse Sixth Form College located in North London. She graduated with a degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Magdalen College, Oxford in 1988. Subsequently, she obtained a journalism diploma from the School of Journalism at Cardiff University.

Career

Hartley-Brewer’s journalism journey began at the East London Advertiser based in east London. She later served as a news reporter and political correspondent for the Evening Standard before moving to The Guardian, where she worked until September 2000. Following this, she joined the Sunday Express as political correspondent, advancing to political editor between 2001 and 2007, and subsequently becoming assistant editor (politics). She departed from the Sunday Express in February 2011.

In 2006, she presented two political documentary programs for BBC Two and BBC Four, focusing on British Deputy Prime Ministers and Leaders of the Opposition.

From February 2011 until December 2014, Hartley-Brewer was a presenter on LBC, after which she was replaced by Shelagh Fogarty. She then commenced hosting the mid-morning weekday show on Talkradio, part of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, starting March 2016. In January 2018, she transitioned to presenting the weekday breakfast slot.

In September 2019, she launched The Julia Hartley-Brewer Show on YouTube under the Talkradio brand, featuring one-on-one interviews. This program was later simulcast daily on TalkTV when it debuted in April 2022.

Her written contributions include opinion pieces and columns on politics and current affairs for outlets such as The Daily Telegraph, The Mail on Sunday, and The Spectator.

Public appearances

Hartley-Brewer has appeared ten times as a panelist on the comedic quiz show Have I Got News for You. She is also a frequent panel member on BBC One’s Question Time and BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions. Additionally, she regularly provides commentary and analysis across television and radio platforms including Sky News, BBC One's The One Show, ITV's This Morning, BBC Radio 5 Live, as well as Radio 4’s Today and PM programs.

In October 2014, she competed on Pointless Celebrities, winning a prize for her selected charity.

Views and incidents

During the 2016 Brexit referendum, Hartley-Brewer was a vocal advocate and later addressed the Leave Means Leave rally held in Parliament Square in 2019.

Identifying as an atheist and a committed, long-term republican, she holds the position of honorary associate with the National Secular Society. In 2018, she delivered a talk at Oxford University titled "Political Correctness and Free Speech," where she criticized political correctness for restricting free political discourse.

Often labeled as aligned with "right-wing" ideologies by analysts, Hartley-Brewer has attracted controversy due to her stance on transgender topics, including her decision to ban the word "cis" on her Talkradio program. In 2019, after more than 700 general practitioners signed a petition opposing her opinions on inclusivity, the Royal College of General Practitioners rescinded her invitation to speak at their annual meeting. This followed backlash over a deleted tweet in which she defended Enoch Powell's contentious speech.

In June 2016, Hartley-Brewer faced complaints after likening Owen Jones to ISIS during a Sky News segment. Later, in October 2017, she accused then Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon of inappropriate touching, a claim that contributed to his resignation.

Her August 2018 tweet referencing the aftermath of the Omagh bombing drew criticism from victims' relatives for perceived insensitivity; however, she defended the remark as satirical.

In October 2019, Hartley-Brewer was charged with disclosing Jolyon Maugham’s residential address amid ongoing death threats against him; she countered by stating that the address was already publicly accessible.

In April 2021, Ofcom recorded over 200 complaints following Hartley-Brewer’s appearance on This Morning, where viewers felt her comments about Meghan Markle and Prince Archie downplayed issues of racism.

In December 2022, after environmental activist Greta Thunberg commented on Andrew Tate, Hartley-Brewer tweeted critically about Thunberg’s autism before reposting without mentioning it. She declared she would "choose Andrew Tate's life *every single time*" over Thunberg’s—a statement that gained attention when Tate was later arrested on serious allegations.

On 4 January 2024, during an interview with Palestinian politician Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Hartley-Brewer was accused of frequently interrupting him. This broadcast generated more than 17,000 complaints to Ofcom, making it the most complained-about UK show of that year.

Following the 2024 Bondi Junction stabbings in Sydney, Australia, Hartley-Brewer prematurely attributed the incident to an Islamic terrorist via Twitter before any suspect identification was confirmed. The post was widely condemned as misinformation and removed after amassing over nine million views; it was later clarified that the attacker was not Muslim.

Hartley-Brewer is a member of the advisory council for the Free Speech Union.

Personal life

In 2006, Hartley-Brewer married Rob Walton. The couple has one daughter.

External links

• Julia Hartley-Brewer, TalkTV, YouTube