Fraser Nelson

Fraser Nelson
Nelson speaking in 2012
Born	Fraser Nelson (1973-05-14) 14 May 1973 (age 43) Nairn, Scotland
Nationality	British
Education	University of Glasgow City University
Occupation	Journalist (editor, The Spectator)

Fraser Nelson (born 14 May 1973) is a British political journalist and editor of The Spectator magazine.

Educated at Nairn Academy and Dollar Academy, Nelson went on to study history and politics at the University of Glasgow and gained a diploma in journalism at City University, London. He is Catholic, and he once worked as a barman at Cleos in Rosyth.

Nelson began his journalistic career as a business reporter with The Times in 1997, followed by a short spell as Scottish political correspondent. At a party in Scotland he met Andrew Neil, then editor of The Scotsman who recruited him as its political editor in 2001. In 2003 he moved to The Business, a sister title of The Scotsman in the Barclay brothers' Press Holdings group. In July 2004 the brothers bought The Telegraph Group, which included The Spectator and in December 2005 they sold The Scotsman Publications Ltd. Neil had been appointed Chief Executive of The Spectator after the Barclays bought it, and in 2006 he brought in Nelson as associate editor and then political editor of the magazine. He replaced Matthew d'Ancona as editor of The Spectator when the latter was sacked in August 2009.

In addition to his role as editor of The Spectator, Nelson was a political columnist for the News of the World from 2006 and a board director with the Centre for Policy Studies think tank. He was named Political Columnist of the Year in the 2009 Comment Awards.

In 2013, the Evening Standard named Nelson as one of the most influential journalists working in London. The British Society of Magazine Editors awarded Nelson the 2013 Editors’ Editor of the Year. In the same year he won the British Press Award as Political journalist of the Year.