John Kampfner has had a 40-year career in public life spanning global affairs, politics, media and arts. He is author of seven books. He is researching his eighth, his most ambitious yet.

His most recent book, ‘In Search of Berlin’, was published in hardback in 2023 to wide acclaim. It was long listed for the Ondaatje prize and was a Waterstones history book of the month. The paperback is just out.

He is a regular speaker at conferences and literary festivals.

To make a request, please contact Michael Levey at Speaking Office here.

He writes regular columns for the Guardian, Foreign Policy, Politico, the FT and Die Zeit. He is a regular contributor on broadcast media.

He recently launched a weekly Substack column, in which he analyses the state of Germany, Europe and the world.

His current positions include:

• Chair of the Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration. 

• Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute

• Chair of Young Königswinter

• Board member of the Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft (German-British Association)

His career highlights:

John began his journalistic career with the Telegraph, first in East Berlin where he reported on the fall of the Wall and unification of Germany, then in Moscow at the time of the collapse of Soviet Communism. He went on to work for the FT and BBC covering UK politics.

As Editor of the New Statesman from 2005 to 2008, he took the magazine to 30-year circulation highs. He was Society of Magazine Editors Current Affairs Editor of the Year in 2006.

He has made many programmes over the years for BBC Television, BBC Radio 4 and BBC World Service. This includes a two-parter called ‘The Ugly War’ on the Israel-Palestine conflict in 2002, for which he received the Foreign Press Association awards for Film of the Year and Journalist of the Year

In 2021, at Chatham House, he set up its UK in the World programme, becoming its first Executive Director.

For eight years he was founder Chair of Turner Contemporary, establishing one of the UK’s most successful art galleries. From 2014-18 he was founder Chief Executive of the Creative Industries Federation.

He was Chief Executive of the freedom of expression organisation, Index on Censorship, between 2008 and 2011l; he subsequently advised Google on these issues for two years.

He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate for his services to the arts by Bath Spa University in 2019.