 | This biographical articleis writtenlike a résumé. Pleasehelp improve it by revising it to beneutral andencyclopedic.(November 2023) |
Sebastian Payne | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Payne in 2013 | |
| Born | (1989-07-02)2 July 1989 (age 35) Gateshead,Tyne and Wear, England |
| Education | St Thomas More Catholic School Dame Allan's School |
| Alma mater | Durham University (BSc) City, University of London (MA) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2011–present |
| Employer | The Times |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse | |
Sebastian Early Anthony Payne[1] (born 2 July 1989) is a British journalist and formerthink tank director. He began his career with stints atThe Daily Telegraph andThe Spectator, before joining theFinancial Times in 2016, where he eventually rose to become the paper'sWhitehall correspondent. In 2022, he left the paper to become director of the think tankOnward. He left the think tank and joinedThe Times as a writer and columnist at the end of 2024.[2]
Payne was born on 2 July 1989,[3][4][non-primary source needed] inGateshead, England. He attendedSt Thomas More Catholic School,Blaydon, and later the private day schoolDame Allan's School forsixth form,[5] where he began studying politics.[6] AtDurham University, he studied computer science.[7] He was media editor of the student newspaperPalatinate,[1][6] and manager ofPurple Radio, a student radio station where he also presented a show.[1] During his tenure as manager, Purple Radio received a fine fromPRS for Music for not paying any fees for playing music on the station for five years.[7] He graduated from the university'sVan Mildert College[8] in 2010 with a Bachelor of Science.[9]
After graduation,[7] Payne completed an internship on the media desk ofThe Guardian.[6] He obtained aMaster of Arts in investigative journalism fromCity, University of London in 2011.[9][10]
Payne volunteered forConservative Campaign Headquarters during the2010 general election campaign.[citation needed]
Payne became a data reporter atThe Daily Telegraph in 2011, before leaving the paper the following year.[11] He was an online editor ofThe Spectator magazine[12] and the deputy editor of its Coffee House blog from 2012 to 2015.[13] He was also managing editor of the magazine.[7] During his time atThe Spectator he spent nine months in aLaurence Stern fellowship at the national desk ofThe Washington Post.[14][7]
Payne joined theFinancial Times as digital opinion editor[15] at the beginning of 2016.[6] He became the paper's political leader writer,[15] before being appointedWhitehall correspondent in March 2019. He wrote a fortnightly political opinion column[16] and presented the weeklyPayne's Politics podcast.[17]
In 2021,Pan Macmillan published Payne's book,Broken Heartlands: A Journey Through Labour's Lost England, about thered wall areas that voted for theConservative Party at the2019 general election.[18]
In November 2022, Pan Macmillan publishedThe Fall of Boris Johnson, Payne's book about Prime MinisterBoris Johnson's downfall.[19][20]
In December 2022, Payne left theFinancial Times to become director of thethink tankOnward.[21]
In 2023, Payne applied to be the Conservativeprospective parliamentary candidate for the2023 Selby and Ainsty by-election and was shortlisted but not selected.[22][23] Later that year, he applied to be the party's candidate inWest Suffolk for the2024 general election, but was defeated byNick Timothy.[24] Payne unsuccessfully ran to be the Conservative candidate in several other seats, includingBromsgrove,[25]Bridlington and the Wolds,[26]Waveney Valley,[27] andSurrey Heath.[28] With the close of nominations for seats on 7 June, Payne failed to be selected for a seat at the2024 general election.[29]
Payne lives inArchway, North London.[30] He married Sophia Gaston on 20 July 2019. Gaston is aLondon School of Economics visiting fellow and Head of Foreign Policy and UK Resilience at the conservativethink tankPolicy Exchange.[31][32][33]
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