Ruth Gledhill (born 1959) is an English

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

and is a former religion affairs correspondent for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'', a post she left in 2014. Gledhill was the last full-time newspaper journalist dedicated to religious affairs in the UK. She is currently assistant editor, home and digital, of ''

The Tablet ''The Tablet'' is a Catholic international weekly review published in London. Brendan Walsh, previously literary editor and then acting editor, was appointed editor in July 2017. History ''The Tablet'' was launched in 1840 by a Quaker convert ...

''. Gledhill grew up in Gratwich, Staffordshire, a small village near

Uttoxeter Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from De ...

, as the daughter of the local vicar. She is married to Alan Franks, a writer for ''

'' 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 ...

'', a playwright and musician. The couple have one son, Arthur. Gledhill began her career in Uttoxeter with the '' Uttoxeter Advertiser'' and then moved to the '' Birmingham Post'' and ''

Birmingham Evening Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts of Warwickshire, Worcestershire a ...

'' before joining the '' Daily Mail'' in 1984 and ''

'' in 1987; she became ''The Times'' religion correspondent in 1989. She co-authored (with Tim Webb) a guide to Birmingham entitled ''Birmingham is not a Boring City''. She also edited ''The Times Book of Prayers'' and ''The Times Book of Best Sermons'', published for six years in connection with The Times Preacher of the Year Award. Gledhill has argued in favour of the "benefits of schism" within the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

, taking a critical stance against

Peter Akinola Peter Jasper Akinola (born 27 January 1944, in Abeokuta) is the former Anglican Primate of the Church of Nigeria. He is also the former bishop of Abuja and Archbishop of Province III, which covered the northern and central parts of the coun ...

and other church leaders with conservative views on homosexuality. Gledhill has been shortlisted three times in the

British Press Awards The Press Awards, formerly the British Press Awards, is an annual ceremony that celebrates the best of United Kingdom, British journalism. History Established in 1962 by ''The Sunday People, The People'' and ''Campaign (magazine), World's Press ...

and won the

Andrew Cross Award Andrew Cross Awards were British awards for religious journalism. They were awarded annually by the Churches' Media Council, an association which brought together churches, broadcasters, broadcasting authorities (both commercial and public service ...

for Religious Writer of the Year in 2004

References

External links

Gledhill articles on the Journalisted website
1959 births Living people British journalists People from Uttoxeter British women journalists {{UK-journalist-stub