Neal Ascherson

Scottish journalist and writer Neal Ascherson studied history at Cambridge, and was described by the late Eric Hobsbawn as "perhaps the most brilliant student I ever had." After a two-year stint in the Royal Marines he started pursuing a journalism career, working for the Manchester Guardian and the Scotsman before becoming a reporter and foreign correspondent for the Observer. He has won awards including the Orwell Prize for political writing, and has published several books – most recently, Stone Voices: The Search for Scotland.