James Fergusson (born 1966) is a British journalist and author specialising in Muslim affairs.

Early life

Fergusson was born in London, the son of the Scottish journalist, author and MEP, Adam Fergusson, and Penelope Hughes (d.2009). He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

and Brasenose College, Oxford.

Career

Fergusson started at The Independent before joining

Robert Maxwell Ian Robert Maxwell (born Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch; 10 June 1923 – 5 November 1991) was a Czechoslovak-born British media proprietor, member of parliament (MP), suspected spy, and fraudster. Early in his life, Maxwell escaped from ...

’s ill-fated weekly, '' The European'', where he became Op-Ed Features Editor. His interest in Islamic affairs developed when he turned freelance in the mid-1990s, and began reporting from Algeria, Bosnia and Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. In 1998 he moved to Sarajevo as press spokesman for the Office of the High Representative, the UN-mandated body charged with implementing the 1995 Dayton Peace Accord. This was followed by a stint in London as an executive at Hakluyt & Company, the secretive corporate intelligence agency. He returned to full-time writing in 2004 with the publication of his first book, ''Kandahar Cockney''.

Books

''Kandahar Cockney'' (

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News ...

2004) tells the story of Mir, an Afghan asylum-seeker in London who had worked for Fergusson as a translator on assignment in northern Afghanistan. It was a Radio 4 Book of the Week. This was followed by ''The Vitamin Murders'' (Portobello 2007), an account of the 1952 murder of the nutritionist

Sir Jack Drummond Sir Jack Cecil Drummond FRIC, FRS (12 January 1891 – 4/5 August 1952) was a distinguished biochemist, noted for his work on nutrition as applied to the British diet under rationing during the Second World War. He was murdered, together with ...

. ''A Million Bullets'' ( Transworld 2008), a critique of Britain's military engagement in Afghanistan, was the British Army's Military Book of the Year. It was followed by ''Taliban – Unknown Enemy'' (2010), a plea for greater understanding and engagement with Nato's Afghan enemy. ''The World's Most Dangerous Place'' (2013) examines the security threat posed to the West by the failed state of Somalia and its diaspora. It was shortlisted for the

Orwell Prize The Orwell Prize, based at University College London, is a British prize for political writing. The Prize is awarded by The Orwell Foundation, an independent charity (Registered Charity No 1161563, formerly "The Orwell Prize") governed by a boa ...

. '' Al-Britannia, My Country'' (2017) recounts his year spent among Britain's Muslims, and argues for a new approach to that fast-expanding community. His latest book, In Search of the River Jordan (Yale University Press 2023), investigates the politics of water supply in Israel-Palestine.

Personal life

Fergusson married Melissa Rose Norman (1970-2021) in 2004. He lives in Edinburgh with his four children.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fergusson, James 1966 births Living people Journalists from London People educated at Eton College Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford British male journalists 20th-century British journalists 20th-century English male writers 21st-century British journalists 21st-century British non-fiction writers 21st-century English male writers