Amanda Platell

Amanda Platell (born 1957) is an Australian journalist. Between 1999 and 2001 she was the press secretary to William Hague, the then leader of the British Conservative Party. She is currently a UK-based journalist.

Personal life

Platell was born in Perth, Western Australia. Her father was a journalist working for The West Australian newspaper and her mother was a secretary. Platell graduated with an Honours Degree in Politics and Philosophy from the University of Western Australia, her first job was in 1978 when she joined the Perth Daily News.

She has lamented that for medical reasons she has been unable to have children.

Early British career

After a backpacking tour of the world with her then fiance John Chenery, she arrived in London in 1985. Aiming to earn enough money to return home she worked as a freelancer for publications including The Observer and the Sunday Express.

After being part of the start-up team of Today, she then joined Robert Maxwell's short-lived London Daily News, before returning under Today editor David Montgomery in 1987 as deputy editor. In 1993 she was appointed managing editor of the Mirror Group, and then moved in the same year to The Independent, initially as marketing director and then managing director.