Simon Hattenstone (born 29 December 1962 in Salford, England) is a British journalist and writer. He is a features writer and interviewer for The Guardian.[1] He has also written or ghost-written a number of biographical books.
Life
Hattenstone grew up in a Jewish family.[2][3] He was severely ill with encephalitis for three years as a child, and became an ambassador for The Encephalitis Society.[4] He reported lifelong changes as an aftermath of his illness.[5]
He studied English at Leeds University and trained to be a teacher, then moved to London to work as a journalist. On The Guardian, he wrote a sports column for three years, in which he described the vicissitudes of being a die-hard Manchester City supporter long before it was revived after being acquired by the wealthy ruling family of Abu Dhabi. He also became assistant arts editor and film editor.[6]
Books by Hattenstone include Out of It: The Story of a Boy who Went to Bed with a Headache and Woke Up Three Years Later, about his childhood illness,[12][6] and The Best of Times, about the lives of members of England's 1966 football world cup team.[13] He has ghost-written books for the snooker player Ronnie O'Sullivan[14] and for Duwayne Brooks, who was attacked with Stephen Lawrence on the night Lawrence was murdered.[15]
Film and television
Hattenstone co-wrote the television documentary series Brits Abroad (2000).[16]