Martin Rowson (/ˈroʊsən/ROH-sən; born 15 February 1959) is a Britisheditorial cartoonist and writer. His genre is political satire and his style is scathing and graphic. He characterises his work as "visual journalism".^[1] His cartoons appear frequently inThe Guardian and theDaily Mirror. He also contributesfreelance cartoons to other publications, such asTribune,Index on Censorship and theMorning Star. He is chair of theBritish Cartoonists' Association.^[2]

Martin Rowson
Rowson at aBritish Cartoonists' Association event in May 2018
Born	(1959-02-15)15 February 1959 (age 66) England
Nationality	British
Alma mater	Pembroke College, Cambridge
Known for	Political cartoons
Website	www.martinrowson.com

Rowson was adopted as a child,^[3] and educated at the independentMerchant Taylors' School inNorthwood in north-westLondon, followed byPembroke College, Cambridge, where he studied English Literature.

In the late 1990s, Rowson was resident Cult Books Expert onMark Radcliffe’s late-night Radio 1 show, a role, which he took over from his friendWill Self.^{[citation needed]} Rowson's own books include graphic adaptations ofThe Waste Land andTristram Shandy. His novelSnatches, published in 2006 (ISBN 0-224-07604-3), is a comic journey through history, focusing on the "stories of the worst decisions the human race has ever made".Stuff (2007), his next novel, is part autobiography, part history of his family and upbringing. He also drew original cartoons for the title sequence of the filmPride and Prejudice and Zombies.^[4]

In 2008, he publishedThe Dog Allusion: Gods, Pets and How to Be Human, arguing that religion is a complete waste of time and money — much like keeping pets. (The title is itself an allusion to theRichard Dawkins bookThe God Delusion.) In 2014,The Coalition Book, containing a collection of cartoons, and a written account, of the four years of the coalition government, was published by Self Made Hero. Rowson is an Honorary Associate of theNational Secular Society^[5] and a distinguished supporter and board member ofHumanists UK.^[6]

Rowson was appointed "Cartoonist Laureate" of London whenKen Livingstone wasMayor, and his cartoons appeared in the Mayor's newsletter,The Londoner. In 2006, Rowson was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Journalism from theUniversity of Westminster. In 2014, he was appointed to an Honorary Fellowship byGoldsmiths, University of London.

On 15 September 2010, Rowson, along with 54 other public figures, signed an open letter published inThe Guardian, stating his opposition toPope Benedict XVI's state visit to the UK.^[7]

In June 2013, Rowson became the fifthtrustee forPeople's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), a wildlife conservation charity based inBattersea, south-west London.^[8]

On 29 April 2023, Rowson apologised onTwitter for his cartoon published byThe Guardian that day, which included a caricature ofRichard Sharp that was criticised as beingantisemitic.^[9] Rowson tweeted: "Through carelessness and thoughtlessness I screwed up pretty badly with a Graun toon today & many people are understandably very upset. I genuinely apologise, unconditionally."^[10] Rowson later published a fuller response on his own website, clarifying his intentions when devising the cartoon and emphasising his deep regret at the offence caused.^[11]

Some hours after the initial publication, theGuardian removed Rowson's cartoon from their web edition stating: "The cartoon that was posted here today did not meet our editorial standards, and we have decided to remove it from our website."^[12]

The historianSimon Sebag Montefiore referred to the cartoon as "repellent" and "explicitly racist". Dave Rich, head of policy at theCommunity Security Trust (CST) charity, said that the cartoon "falls squarely into an antisemitic tradition of depicting Jews with outsized, grotesque features, often in conjunction with money and power". Rowson, who said that he knew Sharp was Jewish, commented: "His Jewishness never crossed my mind as I drew him as it's wholly irrelevant to the story or his actions, and it played no conscious role in how I twisted his features according to the standard cartooning playbook."^[13]

Shortly after these events, Rowson took an extended leave of absence from theGuardian (May to August 2023). In a comment piece published in the paper in July, he stated that he had been "consumed with deep, devouring shame" and felt he had "lost all sense of moral authority or even agency to draw anything or judge anyone". He also said that he had been "talking to lots of people, prominent and otherwise, from across the Jewish community both to atone and to help me understand how I could have done this terrible thing".^[14]

Rowson is married and has two children.Who's Who lists his interests as "cooking, drinking, ranting, atheism, zoos, collecting taxidermy".^[15] He is a supporter and trustee of theZoological Society of London (ZSL), having taken an active role in the campaign to cancel plans to close the organization’sLondon Zoo in 1991, and since serving multiple terms on its governing council.^[16]

In December 2019, along with 42 other leading cultural figures, Rowson signed a letter endorsing theLabour Party underJeremy Corbyn's leadership in the2019 general election. The letter stated that "Labour's election manifesto under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership offers a transformative plan that prioritises the needs of people and the planet over private profit and the vested interests of a few."^[17][18]

• Rowson, Martin (1983).Scenes From The Lives of the Great Socialists. Grapheme Publications.ISBN 978-0946459025.
• Rowson, Martin (1990).The Waste Land. Harper Collins.ISBN 978-0060964764.
• Rowson, Martin (2005).Mugshots. Politico's Publishing Ltd.ISBN 978-1842750650.
• Rowson, Martin (2007).Snatches. Vintage.ISBN 978-0099485247.
• Rowson, Martin (2008).The Dog Allusion: Pets, Gods and How to be Human. Random House.ISBN 978-0099521334.
• Rowson, Martin (2008).Stuff: A Memoir of Death and Life. Vintage.ISBN 978-0099502654.
• Rowson, Martin (2008).Fuck: The Human Odyssey. Jonathan Cape.ISBN 978-0224084413.
• Rowson, Martin (2009).Giving Offence. Seagull Books.ISBN 978-1906497019.
• Rowson, Martin (May 2010).The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. SELFMADEHERO.ISBN 978-1906838133.
• Rowson, Martin (November 2011).The Limerickiad Volume 1 – From Gilgamesh to Shakespeare. Smokestack Books.ISBN 978-0956814425.
• Rowson, Martin (March 2012).Gulliver's Travels.Atlantic Books.ISBN 978-1848872820.^[19]
• Rowson, Martin (November 2012).The Limerickiad Volume II – From Donne to Austen. Smokestack Books.ISBN 978-0956814494.
• Rowson, Martin (November 2013).The Limerickiad Volume III – From Byron to Baudelaire. Smokestack Books.ASIN B01HCA15MC.
• Rowson, Martin.The Communist Manifesto.

• Martin Rowson cartoons atThe Guardian
• Interview alongside Steve Bell
• Cartoonist Laureate page at the Mayor of London's website
• Biography of Rowson from the British Cartoon Archive, University of Kent
• Rowson on Hogarth – a video presented by Martin Rowson atTate's website.