John Mitchinson | |
|---|---|
| Education | University of Oxford |
| Occupation(s) | Author,publisher,broadcaster |
| Years active | 1980s–present |
| Known for | Head of research forQI; managing director ofQuite Interesting Limited;Backlisted Podcast,Unbound |
| Website | www.QI.com |
John Mitchinson is a British publisher, podcaster and the head of research for the British televisionpanel gameQI. He is themanaging director ofQuite Interesting Limited and co-writer of theQI series of books with the show's creatorJohn Lloyd. The two men are normally referred to as "The Two Johns" and are seen as the main controllers ofQI. He also has a column called "The Upsidedown" at theByline Times.
Mitchinson is cofounder of the international publishing companyUnbound, and along withAndy Miller presents Unbound's literature podcastBacklisted ("giving new life to old books").[1] In March 2025, Unbound went into administration, leaving many of its authors owed thousands of pounds in unpaid royalties.[2] Unbound relaunched as Boundless Publishing and Mitchinson retained his role as Director of the company, having purchased Unbound's assets in a pre-pack sale.[3] In May 2025, he quit Boundless.[4]
Mitchinson acted as anassociate producer for thefirst series. For several years Mitchinson was also director of the "QI Club", which was situated at 16Turl Street,Oxford.[5] Under his management the building consisted of a bookshop,[6] a café-bar and a vodka bar, as well as a number of rooms devoted to use by the private members club.[7]
After the success of theQI TV series, Mitchinson co-authored, withQI's creatorJohn Lloyd, the QI Annuals for 2008 and 2009,[8][9] as well the mainQI books, these beingThe Book of General Ignorance,[10]The Book of Animal Ignorance,[11]Advanced Banter: The QI Book of Quotations,[12] andThe QI Book of the Dead.
Mitchinson's most recentQI books were1,227 QI Facts to Blow Your Socks Off and1,411 Quite Interesting Facts to Knock You Sideways.
With Andy Miller, Mitchinson co-presents theBacklisted podcast since 2015 for over 250 episodes.[13] The premise of the podcast is to "give new life to old books" by discussing them.
For the ten years beforeQI, Mitchinson was a book publisher, runningthe Harvill Press,Cassell & Co and acting as Deputy Publisher of theOrion Group, now the UK's third largest publisher. Prior to that he spent six years as Marketing Director ofWaterstone’s the booksellers. He is a Vice-President of theHay Festival, a director of Jonathan Burrows contemporary dance group, a Fellow of theRSA and a Trustee of the London Centre for International Storytelling.[14]
Mitchinson lives in theOxfordshire village ofGreat Tew, where his spare time is spent with his wife and children, raising pigs, chickens, and sheep.
