Background
The son of an Anglican clergyman in the Diocese of Chester, he moved from Macclesfield to Birkenhead in 1940.
The son of an Anglican clergyman in the Diocese of Chester, he moved from Macclesfield to Birkenhead in 1940.
He was educated at Birkenhead School, and Keble College, Oxford.
He is a former president of the British Board of Film Classification. Most of his career has been spent in the City in journalism, including as city editor of The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph, and as editor of the Investors Chronicle and Stock Exchange Gazette. He still contributes articles on a regular basis.
On 6 March 2002 The Queen approved Whittam Smith"s appointment as First Church Estates Commissioner.
He was chairman of the Financial Ombudsman Service from 2001 to 2003. He is also a director of Independent News and Media (United Kingdom), Vice Chairman of Tunbridge Wells Equitable Friendly Society, and a vice-president of the National Council for One Parent Families.
He was appointed president of the British Board of Film Classification in 1998, instigating liberalisation of film and video censorship, a post from which he resigned in 2002. He has been on the Board of Trustees of The Architecture Foundation.
In 2012 Whittam Smith started the movement to attempt to reform how British democracy functions.
The movement stood a candidate, Adam Lotun, in the Corby by-election on 15 November 2012. He came 13th out of 14 candidates, with 35 votes.