Paul Lester is a British music journalist, author and broadcaster from Elstree, Hertfordshire.

Career

He began his career as a freelance journalist, for Melody Maker in the early 1990s, as well as City Limits, 20/20, Sky Magazine and The Jewish Chronicle. He covered grunge, shoegaze, Madchester and Britpop, also spending time with bands touring the UK and internationally.^[1]

In 1993, Lester became Melody Maker's features editor; then in 1997, left to join Allan Jones in launching monthly music and film magazine Uncut, remaining deputy editor until 2006.

Lester has written more than a dozen rock / pop biographies, co-authored the Virgin Encyclopedia of Albums and often appears as a radio / television music pundit. He has interviewed hundreds of thespians and musicians including Kylie Minogue, Janet Jackson, Mick Jagger and Snoop Dogg. He has also written sleeve notes on many, including: Todd Rundgren, Hall & Oates, The Smiths and The Sex Pistols.^[2]

He currently resides in Hertfordshire, from where he has been freelancing since January 2007. He contributes newspapers, including : Guardian (daily columnist of 'Critics Picks'^[3] and 'New Band of the Day'^[4]), The Sunday Times, the Daily Express, The Mail on Sunday, The Daily Telegraph and The Scotsman. He writes of other periodicals, including: Q (magazine), GQ, Record Collector and The Jewish Chronicle (an autobiographical column about recently remarried life, as a father of three children).^{[citation needed]}

In July 2011, he joined digital station Amazing Radio to present a weekly show dedicated to new music.^[5] The programme continues to broadcast on Thursday afternoons between 1 and 3pm, on the national Digital One network in the UK and online via amazingradio.co.uk and the UK RadioPlayer.

In 2018, Lester became the editor of Record Collector magazine.^{[citation needed]}