Philip James Hammond (born 1 January 1962) is a British physician, broadcaster,

comedian A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolish (as in slapstick), or employing prop comedy. A comedian who addresses an audienc ...

and commentator on health issues in the United Kingdom. He is best known for his humorous commentary on the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

. He first came into the public spotlight writing a column for ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' newspaper, where he wrote with a strong pro- patient rights line and as ''

Private Eye ''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satirical and current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely recognised for its prominent critici ...

''s medical correspondent "MD".

Early life and education

Hammond lived in Australia until the age of seven when his Australian father, Barrie Rees Hammond, Ph.D, a Cambridge-educated physical chemist, killed himself at the age of 38. His English mother moved the family back to England. Hammond was educated at Marlborough Royal Free Grammar School until its closure in 1975, then at its successor St John's Comprehensive, before obtaining a place at

Marlborough College ( 1 Corinthians 3:6: God gives the increase) , established = , type = Public SchoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = Church of England , president = Nicholas Holtam , head_label = Master , head = Louis ...

as his father had taught there. Hammond qualified as a doctor in 1987, having studied at

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college in Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college statu ...

and St Thomas' Hospital Medical School, London.

Career

Medical career

Hammond has worked as a Lecturer in Medical Communication at the Universities of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

and

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

. He previously worked as a GP before retraining as an associate specialist in

chronic fatigue syndrome Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), also called myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) or ME/CFS, is a complex, debilitating, long-term medical condition. The causes and mechanisms of the disease are not fully understood. Distinguishing core symptoms are ...

Performances

He starred in his own show ''59 Minutes to save the NHS'' at the

Edinburgh Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

and was one of two doctor-cum-comics who captained teams on a Channel Five medical quiz, ''Tibs and Fibs'', hosted by

Tony Slattery Tony Declan James Slattery (born 9 November 1959) is an English actor and comedian. He appeared on British television regularly from the mid-1980s, most notably as a regular on the Channel 4 improvisation show '' Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' His ...

. As well as appearing on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

's longest running programme, ''

Countdown A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and ev ...

'', Hammond has starred in the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

TV series '' Trust Me, I'm a Doctor'' and in the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's ...

series ''

Struck Off and Die Struck Off and Die were a British comedy duo active during the 1990s which consisted of doctors Tony Gardner and Phil Hammond. Their material drew heavily on their knowledge and experience of healthcare, and took a particularly cynical view of the ...

'' and ''28 Minutes to Save the NHS''. He has appeared on the BBC TV news quiz '' Have I Got News for You'', as well as the original and longer-running ''

The News Quiz ''The News Quiz'' is a British topical panel game broadcast on BBC Radio 4. History ''The News Quiz'' was first broadcast in 1977 with Barry Norman as chairman. Subsequently, it was chaired by Barry Took from 1979 to 1981, Simon Hoggart f ...

'' on

and '' The Now Show'' on the same station. He also writes the ''Medicine Balls'' column in ''

'', under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

"M.D." (use of pseudonyms is routine for ''Private Eye's'' regular columnists). He presents the ''Music Group'' on BBC Radio 4 and was a regular contributor to Gabby Logan's Sunday morning show on BBC Radio 5. He also has a Saturday mid-morning show on

BBC Radio Bristol BBC Radio Bristol is the BBC's local radio station serving Bristol, Bath and North & North East Somerset. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at Broadcasting House in Bristol. According to RAJAR, the stati ...

between 9am and 12noon. Hammond toured the UK between 2011 and 13 with ''Dr Phil's Rude Health Show'', which was released on DVD in two parts: ''Dr Phil's Rude Health Show'' and ''Confessions of a Doctor''. They were broadcast of BBC Radio 4 Extra in August 2011. He returned to the Edinburgh Fringe for the eighth time in 2011. In September 2013 he began touring the UK with a new show, ''Games to Play with Your Doctor''. Hammond did two shows at the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe: ''Life and Death (But Mainly Death)'' and ''Dr Phil's NHS Revolution''. He toured them together as ''Dr Phil's Health Revolution'' in 2017.

Non-medical broadcasting

Hammond co-presented '' The Heaven and Earth Show'' on BBC1 with

Juliet Morris Juliet Morris (born 26 April 1965) is a British television presenter. Early life Morris was educated at Lady Eleanor Holles School, an independent school for girls in Hampton in West London, where she recalled the difficulties of being left-han ...

in 2000. He presented two series for

of ''Pillories of the State'' in 1999/2000 and presents the ''Music Group'', also on Radio 4 (sixth series 2011). Hammond has also frequently appeared as a guest in the Dictionary Corner on ''

''. Hammond was a presenter for

from 2007, broadcasting on Saturday mornings until on 21 August 2018, he was sacked from the show, after announcing his intention to stand for election as an MP for the

National Health Action Party The National Health Action Party (NHA) is a political party in the United Kingdom. The party grew out of the movement opposing the 2012 Health and Social Care Act. It campaigns for renationalisation of the privatised parts of the English Nat ...

, in the constituency of Jacob Rees-Mogg.

Politics

While a junior doctor, Hammond contested the 1992 general election under the title "Struck Off and Die Doctor's Alliance". He ran in the Bristol West constituency against William Waldegrave, the then

Secretary of State for Health The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department of Health and Social Care. The incumbent ...

, capturing 87 votes. He was one of those who broke the Bristol heart scandal in 1992 and was later called to give evidence at the subsequent enquiry. In 2009, Hammond broke allegations about pathology misdiagnosis in Bristol, the subject of an independent inquiry chaired by Jane Mishcon. He also campaigned for an inquiry into the sacking of Cornwall chief executive John Watkinson. His ''

'' columns are available on his website. In July 2011, Hammond co-authored
''Private Eye'' special investigation
with Andrew Bousfield called ''Shoot the Messenger'', exposing the shocking treatment of NHS

whistleblower A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...

s and how large sums of public money are used to silence them and cover up their concerns. It triggered an

early day motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by members of Parliament that formally calls for debate "on an early day". In practice, they are rarely debated in the House ...

in Parliament by Peter Bottomley, MP. Hammond and Bousfield also launched
website
dedicated to NHS staff, patients and relatives who have highlighted concerns about safety in the NHS. They were involved in referring Barbara Hakin to the

General Medical Council The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public" by ...

. In August 2018 he announced his intention to stand for election as an MP for the

, in the North East Somerset constituency of Jacob Rees-Mogg. As a result, the BBC sacked him from his Bristol radio show.

Writing

Hammond co-authored ''Trust Me, I'm a Doctor'' (Metro Books) with Michael Mosley, the executive producer of the BBC2 series of the same name. There are two editions (1999 and 2002), both out of print. Hammond is the sole author of ''Medicine Balls - Consultations with the World's Greatest TV Doctor'' (2007, 2008) and ''Trust Me, I'm (Still) a Doctor'' (2008, 2009) and ''Sex, Sleep or Scrabble? - Seriously Funny Answers to Life's Quirkiest Questions'' (2009, 2010) and
What Doctors Really Think...16 Years of Wit, Wisdom, and Lies
' (2014). His most recent book is ''Staying Alive: How to Get the Best From the NHS'' With David Spicer, Hammond wrote a four-part

satire called ''Polyoaks'', about GPs struggling with the then-government's NHS reforms. First broadcast in June 2011, it starred

Nigel Planer Nigel George Planer (born 22 February 1953) is a British actor, comedian, musician, novelist and playwright. He played Neil in the BBC comedy '' The Young Ones'' and Ralph Filthy in '' Filthy Rich & Catflap''. He has appeared in many West End ...

, Tony Gardner,

Celia Imrie Celia Diana Savile Imrie (born 15 July 1952) is an English actress and author. She was described in 2003 as one of the most successful British actresses of recent decades. She is best known for her film roles, including the '' Bridget Jones'' f ...

David Westhead David William Logan Westhead (born 1 June 1963) is an English actor. Early life Westhead was born in Ely, Cambridgeshire. He studied drama at Bristol University before going on to RADA, from where he graduated in 1987, after which he joined ...

, Carla Mendonça, David Holt, Phil Cornwell and

Kate O'Sullivan Kate O'Sullivan is a British actress, singer, voiceover artist and impressionist. A graduate of Drama Centre London now Central Saint Martins, she was taught by Yat Malmgren and Christopher Fettes. Theatre Her first job after leaving Drama Centr ...

, with a second series of four transmitted in 2012. Spicer and Hammond's third series of four episodes of ''Polyoaks'' ran on

from 6 June 2014. The fourth series, consisting of six episodes, was broadcast in 2016. A fifth series has been commissioned for broadcast in 2017 In 1999, he was reported to the

William Hague William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

's press secretary over an article he wrote about Hague's slow recovery from a cold. He writes for the '' Mendip Times'', celebrating life on the

Mendips The Mendip Hills (commonly called the Mendips) is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running from Weston-super-Mare and the Bristol Channel in the west to the Frome valley in the east, the hills ...

and in surrounding areas. In 2021, he published ''Dr Hammond's Covid Casebook'', a collection of 30 of his fortnightly columns in ''

'' which formed a detailed analysis of the management of the

COVID-19 pandemic in England The COVID-19 pandemic was first confirmed to have spread to England with two cases among Chinese nationals staying in a hotel in York on 31 January 2020. The two main public bodies responsible for health in England are NHS England and Public ...

Other roles

Hammond is Vice President of the Patients Association and a patron of Meningitis UK, the Doctors Support Network, the Herpes Viruses Association, Patients First and Kissing It Better. He is an advisor for the Association of Young People with ME and a Champion for the Point of Care Foundation He is also a patron of My Death My Decision, an organisation which seeks a more compassionate approach to dying in the UK, including giving people the legal right to a medically assisted death if that is their persistent wish.

References

External links

www.drphilhammond.com - Official websitePhil Hammond's Biography : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide
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Medical Harm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammond, Philip 1962 births Living people British comedians 20th-century English medical doctors People educated at Marlborough College Private Eye contributors Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge Alumni of King's College London 21st-century English medical doctors British general practitioners