Richard Williams

Richard Williams is the chief sports writer for the Guardian and the bestselling author of The Death of Ayrton Senna and Enzo Ferrari: A Life. He is a lifelong fan of Nottingham Forest. Richard Williams is a rock critic who has assumed a significant status in popular culture and whose commentaries have helped to cast light, not just on the music, but on our times. A potent force in British rock journalism from the late 1960s and into the 1980s, he is today he holds the post of chief sports writer on the Guardian, but his early professional years were spent preaching the rock – and jazz – gospel. From 1969 to 1973, he worked on Melody Maker, latterly as Deputy Editor. From 1973-1976 he served Island Records in an A&R role. From 1976-1978, he edited Time Out, and returned to Melody Maker as Editor from 1978-1980. He was the first presenter on ‘The Old Grey Whistle Test,’ wrote for Let It Rock and Streetlife, acted as pop and jazz reviewer on the Times, and wrote books on Phil Spector, Bob Dylan and Miles Davis.