Quentin Letts
A waspish British columnist and theatre critic whose sharp pen and traditionalist views have provoked readers for decades.
Born 1963 (age 63)·British journalist·Birthday: February 6·Baby Boomers
Biography
Quentin Letts is a fixture of the British media landscape, a journalist whose distinctive style blends acerbic wit, political skepticism, and an unwavering defense of traditional institutions. Cutting his teeth at The Daily Telegraph, he became known for his parliamentary sketches—vivid, often unsparing portraits of politicians in action, which read more like theatrical reviews than dry political reporting. This sensibility led naturally to his parallel career as a theatre critic, where he applied a similarly opinionated lens. Letts, who has written for several major British newspapers including the Daily Mail and The Times, positions himself as a champion of common sense and an antagonist of what he perceives as political correctness and bureaucratic pomposity. His work, whether eviscerating a prime minister's performance or panning a West End play, is never dull and is designed to elicit strong reaction, securing his role as a provocative and enduring voice.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Quentin was born in 1963, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Quentin Was Born
The biggest hits of 1963
#1 Movie
Cleopatra
Best Picture
Tom Jones
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
Quentin's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1963Born
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1968Started school
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1976Became a teenager
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1979Could drive
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1981Could vote
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1984Turned 21
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1993Turned 30
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 40
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 50
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 60
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 63 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Authored the long-running parliamentary sketch column for the Daily Mail, offering a critical and theatrical view of Westminster.
- Served as the theatre critic for The Times, providing influential reviews of London's stage productions.
- Wrote the biography '50 People Who Buggered Up Britain', a polemical list critiquing figures from various fields.
- His journalism has appeared in several of the UK's major national newspapers, including The Daily Telegraph, The Times, and the Daily Mail.
Did You Know?
He is a member of the traditionalist Conservative Monday Club.
He once performed a one-man show about the journalist Keith Waterhouse at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
He attended the University of Oxford, studying at Magdalen College.
He began his journalism career as a reporter for the South Wales Echo in Cardiff.
“Westminster is a stage, and the actors upon it are often less convincing than those in the theatres I review.”
