Alastair Campbell was born in Keighley, Yorkshire in 1957, the son of a vet. After graduating from Cambridge University in modern languages, his first chosen career was journalism, principally with the Mirror Group. When Tony Blair became leader of the Labour Party, he asked Campbell to be his press secretary. He worked for Blair - first in that capacity, then as official spokesman and director of communications and strategy - from 1994 to 2003, since when he has been engaged mainly in writing, public speaking and working for Leukaemia Research, where he is chairman of fundraising. He has continued to act as an advisor to Mr Blair and the Labour Party, including during the 2005 election campaign. He lives in North London with his partner of 25 years, Fiona Millar. They have three children Rory, 19, Calum, 17, and Grace, 13. His interests include running, triathlon, bagpipes and Burnley Football Club.
