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Jack Monroe (born 17 March 1988)
is a British food writer, journalist and activist known for campaigning on
poverty issues, particularly
hunger relief. She initially rose to prominence by writing a
blog
A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order s ...
titled ''A Girl Called Jack'' (now renamed ''Cooking on a Bootstrap''), and has since written for publications such as ''
The Echo'', ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'' and ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', as well as publishing several cookbooks focusing on "
austerity recipes" and meals which can be made on a tight budget.
Early life
Monroe was born in
Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...
in 1988 to David Hadjicostas
MBE and Evelyn Hadjicostas (née Beatty), a former nurse. Her father is of
Greek-Cypriot
Greek Cypriots or Cypriot Greeks ( el, Ελληνοκύπριοι, Ellinokýprioi, tr, Kıbrıs Rumları) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2011 census, 659,115 r ...
heritage; he served in the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
for seven years, then with the fire service for 30 years.
He was awarded an
MBE in
2007 Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours 2007 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 17 June 2007, to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2007.Antigua & Barbuda list:
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and ...
for services to children and families. Monroe has three siblings.
Monroe has described herself variously as working class and as middle class.
She passed the
11-plus
The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academi ...
examinations and attended
Westcliff High School for Girls
Westcliff High School for Girls, also known by its initialism WHSG, is a selective grammar school and academy for girls in Southend-on-Sea, Essex and surrounding areas. It teaches students from the age of 11 through to 18 years old, and admission ...
, a
grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
in
Westcliff-on-Sea
Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 ...
. She left school at age 16, "bullied and disillusioned",
with insufficient
GCSEs (she sat 7 and passed 4 and a half of them) to progress to
A Level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
. Despite her future career, she only achieved a low D grade in her
home economics
Home economics, also called domestic science or family and consumer sciences, is a subject concerning human development, personal and family finances, consumer issues, housing and interior design, nutrition and food preparation, as well as texti ...
GCSE.
Monroe left home and worked in a
chip shop and then
Starbucks before taking a job as a call handler for
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Essex in the east of England, and is one of the largest fire services in the country, covering an area of and a population of over 1.7mill ...
. After having a child, she was unable to arrange the work around childcare responsibilities, and was unable to negotiate adjustments to her working pattern to make continued employment feasible. Monroe resigned the post after serving between 2007 and 2011. After leaving the fire service, Monroe began going by the forename Jack – being short for "
Jack of all trades".
She spent the following 18 months on benefits and looking for work, and moved from relative affluence to poverty and financial hardship.
At the end of 2011 and after the birth of her son, she changed her name to Jack Monroe via
deed poll.
Career
Writing
Monroe came to prominence in the media through writing the blog ''A Girl Called Jack'', sharing cheap recipes created as a single parent with a young child, and aiming to provide family meals for less than £10 per week. In December 2015, the blog was renamed as ''Cooking on a Bootstrap''. She chose to write the blog under a pseudonym: 'Jack' was a childhood nickname and 'Monroe' was a tribute to
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
.
In 2012, Monroe became a weekly columnist for ''
The Echo'',
[Part 1]
Part 2
. a south Essex daily newspaper, and in February 2013, was taken on by the same as a trainee reporter – the timing was fortunate, as she was having difficulty affording nursery fees. Monroe was later retained as an unpaid columnist for ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'', before signing a publishing deal with
Penguin Group
Penguin Group is a British trade book publisher and part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. The new company was created by a merger that was finalised on 1 July 2013, with Bertelsmann initi ...
.
The book deal, reported as worth £25,000, resulted in
housing benefit being cut off and Monroe came close to being evicted, which led to moving into cheaper accommodation. Despite working every day, she was unable to make ends meet.
By January 2014, finances had improved, and Monroe was able to move into a small two-bedroom flat with her son.
Monroe formerly wrote a twice-monthly food and recipe column for ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' and additionally contributed a number of political columns, as well as being featured in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' and ''
The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
''. Monroe has written several budget cooking
recipe books.
In April 2020, it was announced that Monroe would co-host ''
Daily Kitchen Live'' on BBC One alongside
Matt Tebbutt
Matt may refer to:
*Matt (name), people with the given name ''Matt'' or Matthew, meaning "gift from God", or the surname Matt
*In British English, of a surface: having a non-glossy finish, see gloss (material appearance)
*Matt, Switzerland, a mu ...
. The programme, made in response to issues stemming from the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, offered tips and guidance to families struggling with limited resources, and aired daily for a two-week period that commenced on 14 April 2020.
Campaigning and politics
Monroe has been an active campaigner for a number of causes in the UK, particularly those concerned with poverty and hunger, campaigning alongside organisations such as
Unite
Unite may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums
* ''Unite'' (A Friend in London album), 2013 album by Danish band A Friend in London
* ''Unite'' (Kool & the Gang album), 1993
* ''Unite'' (The O.C. Supertones album), 2005
Songs ...
,
The Trussell Trust
The Trussell Trust is an NGO and charity that works to end the need for food banks in the United Kingdom. It supports a network of over 1,200 food bank centres to provide emergency food and compassionate, practical support to people in crisis, wh ...
,
Child Poverty Action Group
Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) is a UK charity that works to alleviate poverty and social exclusion. History
The Group first met on 5 March 1965, at a meeting organised by Harriett C. Wilson. It followed the publication of Brian Abel-Smith ...
and
Oxfam.
In 2013, Monroe appeared in a six-week advertising campaign for
Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...
supermarket. Monroe accepted the equivalent of the
living wage
A living wage is defined as the minimum income necessary for a worker to meet their basic needs. This is not the same as a subsistence wage, which refers to a biological minimum, or a solidarity wage, which refers to a minimum wage tracking lab ...
for the six weeks that the campaign ran and donated the remainder of the fee to charities including a
food bank
A food bank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough to avoid hunger, usually through intermediaries like food pantries and soup kitchens. Some food banks distribute food direct ...
.
Monroe appeared in a
Labour Party campaign video in October 2013. She left the Labour Party in March 2015, after disagreeing with its rhetoric on immigration, and became a member of the
Green Party of England and Wales
The Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW; cy, Plaid Werdd Cymru a Lloegr, kw, Party Gwer Pow an Sowson ha Kembra, often simply the Green Party or Greens) is a green, left-wing political party in England and Wales. Since October 2021, Carla ...
, also in March 2015. In April 2016, Monroe appeared online supporting the
Women's Equality Party
The Women's Equality Party (WEP) is a feminist political party set up in the United Kingdom in 2015. The idea was conceived by Catherine Mayer and Sandi Toksvig at the Women of the World Festival, when they concluded that there was a need ...
.
In the
2017 United Kingdom general election, Monroe intended to stand in
Southend West as a candidate for the
National Health Action Party, but withdrew after receiving death threats and because of health problems. In January 2021, Monroe tweeted that she was a "fully paid up member of the Labour Party and have been for quite some time now." Monroe has voiced her support for
Scottish independence. "Scotland deserves better than the scraps that Westminster reluctantly throws every now and then while bleeding your resources dry," she tweeted on 7 July 2022. "Happy to come and campaign for the #indyref2 any time - have a lot of love for your beautiful country."
Speaking in 2014, Monroe described life as having "changed beyond recognition", but said that she is still affected by her experience of poverty.
[ The ]University of Essex
The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the ancient arms attributed to the Kingdom of Es ...
announced in May 2015 that it would be awarding Monroe an honorary degree
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...
.
In 2015, Monroe won the Women of the Future Award in the media category. Monroe was "surprised", saying "I'm not sure I'll even ''be'' a woman in the future". The award was won after Monroe came out as non-binary
Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...
, which created some controversy. The subsequent "gender debate" angered Monroe and she questioned the headlines of some newspapers, saying "Because of my trans
Trans- is a Latin prefix meaning "across", "beyond", or "on the other side of".
Used alone, trans may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Trans (festival), a former festival in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
* ''Trans'' (fil ...
identity, I'm attacked for accepting a real woman's award."
Monroe appeared on BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television's late night political programme ''
This Week'' in June 2015 and again in May 2019.
In May 2017, Monroe participated in a "blind election date" with British television personality
Georgia Toffolo in which they discussed politics.
In January 2022, Monroe complained that food prices were rising faster than the official inflation rate, which hit poor people hardest. The
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics (ONS; cy, Swyddfa Ystadegau Gwladol) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the UK Parliament.
Overview
The ONS is responsible for t ...
agreed that one inflation rate did not reflect everybody's experience, and noted that they had been working since 2021 to revise the
Consumer Price Index, to more accurately measure changes in consumer prices. Monroe stated, "Delighted to be able to tell you that the ONS have just announced that they are going to be changing the way they collect and report on the cost of food prices and inflation to take into consideration a wider range of income levels and household circumstances." Monroe announced plans to launch a new
price index, called the
Vimes Boots Index (VBI), highlighting the greater cost of poverty.
In March 2022, Monroe complained that due to
inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
poor people could not afford food, fuel and rent, and were having to go without food or fuel, or were eating unhealthily because they could not afford healthy food. Monroe called for
social security benefits to be raised in line with inflation. In May 2022, Monroe criticised Conservative MP
Lee Anderson's praise in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
for a food bank which has a compulsory cooking and budgeting class for those accepting food parcels.
Controversy
In November 2014, Monroe said on Twitter that then-
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern ...
David Cameron "uses stories about his dead son as misty-eyed rhetoric to legitimise selling our NHS to his friends". The ''Daily Mail'' journalist
Sarah Vine
Sarah Rosemary Vine (born 16 April 1967) is a British columnist. She has written for the '' Daily Mail'' since 2013. She was previously arts editor at ''The Times''. She was previously married to Conservative MP Michael Gove.
Early life
Sara ...
criticised Monroe for using the death of Cameron's severely disabled son for political purposes and "choosing" a life of poverty. ''The Independent'' described this as a "caustic attack", and Monroe replied on Twitter that the column was "homophobic, transphobic,
deadnaming
Deadnaming is the act of referring to a transgender or non-binary person by a name they used prior to transitioning, such as their birth name. Deadnaming may be unintentional, or a deliberate attempt to deny, mock or invalidate a person's g ...
ndignorant".
In May 2022,
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
for
Ashfield,
Lee Anderson stated that Monroe was "taking money off some of the most vulnerable people in society and making an absolute fortune
ffthe back of people". In response, Monroe indicated that she intended to sue Anderson for libel.
In a January 2023 interview with
Simon Hattenstone
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''. in ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', Monroe acknowledged that she had recklessly spent money given by backers; she claimed "I’d go online absolutely shitfaced and buy nice furniture.” Hattenstone wrote "The guru of thriftiness was chucking away tens of thousands of pounds, given to her by the public to support her work, on items she didn’t even want, let alone need", noting that she didn't deny she'd "abused the goodwill of well-meaning backers".
Writing for ''
Pink News
''PinkNews'' is a UK-based online newspaper marketed to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community (LGBT) in the UK and worldwide. It was founded by Benjamin Cohen in 2005.
It closely follows political progress on LGBT rights ar ...
'' in September 2022, Lily Wakefield noted that Monroe has "faced accusations of inventing experiences of living in poverty",
while in October 2022 Killian Fox noted in ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' that "critics claim that she makes herself out to be poorer than she actually is".
Personal life
Monroe came out as
non-binary
Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...
in October 2015,
and goes by they/them and she/her pronouns. She said she did not change her name to Jack while still working at the fire service, out of concern over "the potential for deadnaming and bullying in a not-particularly-tolerant organisation. Not a great place to be gay, let alone
genderqueer." She also did not take part in a fire-service
passing out ceremony, because protocol would have required her to wear a skirt.
During this period, Monroe had a brief relationship with a male friend which resulted in a son. She also had a long-term relationship with a woman which ended shortly after Monroe told her partner she was considering a mastectomy.
Monroe had previously identified as a
cisgender
Cisgender (often shortened to cis; sometimes cissexual) is a term used to describe a person whose gender identity corresponds to their sex assigned at birth. The word ''cisgender'' is the antonym of '' transgender''. The prefix '' cis-'' is L ...
lesbian. In a February 2014 interview, she described herself as a "lefty, liberal,
lezzer cook".
In 2014, it was reported that Monroe and her son were living with Monroe's then girlfriend
Allegra McEvedy; the relationship ended in October 2015.
In 2017, Monroe said she was suffering from acute
arthritis, citing the affliction as a partial cause for her suspending her campaign for candidacy in the
National Health Action Party. In January 2019, Monroe stated that she was recovering from
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...
, discussing how drinking had affected her work and personal life. Later that month, Monroe announced her engagement.
Monroe was diagnosed with
autism and
ADHD as a child, though was not made aware of this until she was an adult.
Legal actions
Monroe initiated legal action in 2015 after the ''
Daily Mail'' claimed that "Jack" was not her "real" name,
and has requested that her birth name not be used by the media.
In 2014, three years after she legally changed her name, she stated that she still experienced
deadnaming
Deadnaming is the act of referring to a transgender or non-binary person by a name they used prior to transitioning, such as their birth name. Deadnaming may be unintentional, or a deliberate attempt to deny, mock or invalidate a person's g ...
by people.
In 2017, Monroe
won a libel case against newspaper columnist and television personality
Katie Hopkins
Katie Olivia Hopkins (born 13 February 1975) is an English media personality, columnist, far-right political commentator, and former businesswoman. She was a contestant on the third series of ''The Apprentice'' in 2007; following further app ...
, after Hopkins suggested on
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
that Monroe was supportive of vandalism of a war memorial, having confused Monroe with journalist
Laurie Penny
Laurie Penny (born Laura Barnett, 28 September 1986) is a British journalist and writer. Penny has written articles for publications including ''The Guardian,'' ''The New York Times'' and ''Salon''. Penny is a contributing editor at the ''New ...
. Instead of apologising, Hopkins then labelled Monroe "social anthrax". The High Court awarded Monroe £24,000 in damages plus costs.
[Judgment: Monroe -v- Hopkins](_blank)
, HM Courts and Tribunal Service 2017.
In May 2022, Monroe claimed she had instructed libel lawyers to prepare to sue
Lee Anderson because he alleged that she makes money from poor people. Monroe wrote on Twitter that Anderson was "playing a very expensive game of chicken with someone who has a proven track record of crossing this particular road without fear nor favour".
Bibliography
Cookery books
* ''A Girl Called Jack: 100 delicious budget recipes'' (
Michael Joseph, 2014)
* ''A Year in 120 Recipes'' (Michael Joseph, 2014)
* ''Cooking on a Bootstrap: Over 100 simple, budget recipes'' (
Bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
, 2018)
* ''Tin Can Cook: 75 Simple Store-cupboard Recipes'' (
Bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
, 2019)
* ''Vegan (ish): 100 simple, budget recipes that don't cost the earth'' (
Bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
, 2019)
"Vegan(ish) by Jack Monroe cookbook review: 'Plenty to admire from a rising star'"
. ''The Telegraph''. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
* ''Good Food for Bad Days: What to Make When You're Feeling Blue'' (Bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
, 2020)
* ''Thrifty Kitchen'' (Bluebird
The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas.
...
, 2023) ISBN 9781035008513
See also
* Poverty in the United Kingdom
Poverty in the United Kingdom refers to the portion of the population of the United Kingdom that are considered to be in poverty under some measures of poverty.
Data based on incomes published in 2016 by the Department for Work and Pensions ( ...
* United Kingdom government austerity programme
The United Kingdom government austerity programme is a fiscal policy that was adopted for a period in the early 21st century following the Great Recession. The term was used by the Coalition and Conservative governments in office from 2010 to 2 ...
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monroe, Jack
1988 births
Living people
British bloggers
British food writers
British journalists
British cookbook writers
Diet food advocates
People on the autism spectrum
Transgender writers
English people of Greek Cypriot descent
Green Party of England and Wales people
British Internet celebrities
English LGBT writers
Labour Party (UK) people
National Health Action Party people
People from Southend-on-Sea
Non-binary writers
Women's Equality Party people