大象传媒

Amol joined the 大象传媒 in 2016 as its first Media Editor, leading its journalism on media and technology globally.

Prior to joining the 大象传媒, Amol was appointed Editor of The Independent newspaper in 2013, aged 29 - the youngest Editor of a 'broadsheet' title in British history, and the first from an ethnic minority for over a century. He was also a restaurant critic and columnist.

At the 大象传媒, Amol has presented a range of programmes. Alongside Today, he is (with Nick Robinson), co-presenter of The Today Podcast and he interviews leading global figures, pioneers and thinkers for his prime-time series “Amol Rajan Interviews”.

Last year Amol succeeded Jeremy Paxman as the presenter of University Challenge, making him the third presenter of Britain's longest-running TV quiz (the other being Bamber Gascoigne).

Born in Calcutta, Amol grew up in Tooting and went to Graveney School. He read English at Downing College, Cambridge, after a gap year at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and was for two years the mic boy on Channel 5’s The Wright Stuff. His first book, Twirlymen (2011) was a history of spin bowling in cricket. He is the co-founder of KEY Sessions, a charity for inner city teenagers in London.

For 大象传媒 Two, he presented How To Break Into the Elite in 2019 and How to Crack the Class Ceiling in 2022, both on social mobility; and The Princes and the Press (2021).

For Radio 4, he has presented The Imperial Inversion of Cricket (2018), Archive on 4: Rivers of Blood (2018), and The Decline of the West (2018).

He was also the host of Rethink, a series of programmes and podcasts about the world after COVID-19 which resulted in a book, published in May 2021. Over several series, Rethink brought together some of the world's leading thinkers together to examine the future of Fairness, Education, the World Order, Climate and Work.

Amol has been a presenter on Radio 2, including in the Breakfast Show, and hosted The One Show (大象传媒 One), Start the Week and The Media Show (Radio 4).