Paul Johnson is a world-renowned, English journalist, historian, speechwriter and author. He was educated at the Jesuit independent school Stonyhurst College, and at Magdalen College, Oxford, where one of his tutors was the historian A.J.P. Taylor. Johnson first came to prominence in the 1950s as a journalist writing for, and later editing, the New Statesman magazine. A prolific writer, he has written over 50 books and contributed to numerous magazines and newspapers.
Among his many books are Modern Times: A History of the World from the 1920s to the 1980s; A History of Christianity; Intellectuals; A History of the Jews; George Washington: The Founding Father; Socrates: A Man for Our Times; Pope John Paul II and the Catholic Restoration; The Civilization of Ancient Egypt; A History of the American People; Napoleon; Creators; Heroes; Art: A New History; The Oxford Book of Political Anecdotes; Jesus: A Biography from a Believer; Ireland: A Concise History from the Twelfth Century to the Present Day; The Recovery of Freedom; Humorists: From Hogarth to Noel Coward; and British Cathedrals.
He served on the Royal Commission on the Press (1974–77) and was a member of the Cable Authority (regulator) from 1984 to 1990. In 2006 Johnson was honoured with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President George W. Bush.
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