Stig Abell

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Stig Abell
Born
Stephen Paul Abell

(1980-04-10) 10 April 1980
Nottingham, England
Other nameStig
EducationEmmanuel College, Cambridge
Occupations

Stephen "Stig" Abell[1] (born 10 April 1980) is an English journalist and radio presenter. He co-presents the Monday to Thursday breakfast show on Times Radio with Kate McCann.

From 2016 to 2020 Abell was editor of The Times Literary Supplement and from 2013 to 2016 managing editor of The Sun. He was formerly a fiction reviewer at The Spectator and reviewer at Telegraph Media Group as well as The Times Literary Supplement. He was also a presenter on LBC Radio.

Education

Abell was born in Nottingham[2] and educated at Loughborough Grammar School.[3] He studied English at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, graduating with a double first.[2]

Career

In September 2001, Abell joined the Press Complaints Commission as a complaints officer;[4] he completed other roles at the PCC including press officer, assistant director, and deputy director before being appointed director of the PCC in December 2009.[5] In August 2013, Abell joined The Sun as managing editor,[6] staying in the role until 2016.[7]

In March 2014, Abell started co-presenting a show on LBC Radio with Kay Burley on Sunday mornings.[8]

In 2015, Abell was heavily criticised for publishing a racist anti-immigration article by Katie Hopkins in The Sun. The article argued for "gunships sending these boats back to their own country," and described migrants as "like cockroaches." It concluded that Britain should "force migrants back to their shores and burn the boats."[9][2][10]

In May 2016, Abell became the editor of The Times Literary Supplement, succeeding Peter Stothard.[7][11] He held the post until June 2020, when he was succeeded by Martin Ivens.[12][13]

In May 2018, Abell's first book, How Britain Really Works, was published by John Murray.[14]

Abell was formerly a regular presenter on the BBC Radio 4 series Front Row.[15] In April 2020, it was announced that Abell would be joining the upcoming radio station Times Radio as a presenter. He was also named as the station's launch director.[16]

In November 2020, he released his second book, Things I Learned on the 6.28: A Guide to Daily Reading.[17] In September 2021, The Bookseller reported that HarperCollins had agreed to a three-book deal with Abell's agents including his first work of crime fiction and a non-fiction title.[18] HarperCollins has published three books in his Jake Jackson series.[19]

In February 2025, Abell began co-presenting a new breakfast show on Times Radio alongside the station's political editor, Kate McCann.[20]

References

  1. "Stephen Abell". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  2. Garner, Dwight (26 May 2018). "A Scrappy Makeover for a Tweedy Literary Fixture". The New York Times.
  3. Greenslade, Roy (1 May 2016). "From Sun to TLS: Stig Abell on phone hacking, Leveson and books". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  4. Oliver, Laura (5 November 2009). "PCC appoints Stephen Abell as new director". Journalism UK. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
  5. Greenslade, Roy (16 May 2011). "The PCC's Stephen Abell on why pre-publication advice works". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  6. "The Sun appoints Stephen Abell managing editor". BBC News. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  7. Greenslade, Roy (12 February 2016). "Sun managing editor Stig Abell to become editor of the TLS". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  8. Greenslade, Roy (12 March 2014). "Kay Burley and The Sun's Stig Abell to co-host LBC breakfast radio show". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  9. Usborne, Simon (20 April 2015). "What Katie Hopkins has just written might give Hitler pause – why was it published?". The Independent. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  10. Okwonga, Musa (11 December 2018). "Raheem Sterling shouldn't have to educate the media about racism". The Guardian.
  11. "Stig Abell appointed Editor/Publisher of the Times Literary Supplement | News UK". News UK. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  12. Comerford, Ruth (24 June 2020). "Martin Ivens to become TLS editor as Stig Abell departs". The Bookseller. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  13. Tobitt, Charlotte (24 June 2020). "Ex-Sunday Times editor Martin Ivens takes helm at TLS as Stig Abell focuses on radio". PressGazette. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  14. Hinsliff, Gaby (11 May 2018). "How Britain Really Works by Stig Abell review – the facts about a muddle of a country". The Guardian.
  15. "Stig Abell". www.curtisbrown.co.uk. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  16. Martin, Roy (27 April 2020). "Times Radio schedule revealed ahead of summer launch". RadioToday. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  17. "Things I Learned on the 6.28 by Stig Abell". Waterstones. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  18. Bailey, Sian (7 September 2021). "Abell's crime fiction debut goes to HarperCollins in three-book deal". The Bookseller. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  19. "Stig Abell". HarperCollins. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  20. Martin, Roy (16 January 2025). "Kate McCann to co-host breakfast on Times Radio with Stig Abell". RadioToday. Retrieved 8 February 2026.