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Jonathan Charles was educated at Oriel College, Oxford University, where he studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics. He worked as a freelance reporter for the BBC from 1980 to 1986 when he then joined ITN before returning to the BBC with a permanent position as News Reporter and Correspondent.

He became a familiar face, reporting from across the world on major stories, including the 1991 and 2003 Iraq wars, the Balkan conflict, the 2001 Afghan War, and the Moscow theatre siege, among many others. Jonathan also made many current affairs films for BBC TV’s Money Programme and Correspondent strands.

Jonathan Charles has received several journalism awards throughout his career.

Among the personal highlights of Jonathan’s career are interviewing Nelson Mandela twice and once being told off by Margaret Thatcher because she didn’t like a question he had asked.

BBC Correspondent 

Jonathan was a familiar voice and face after thirty years on BBC Television and Radio. He was a BBC Foreign and War Correspondent, covering some of the biggest stories of recent years, including 29 wars and conflicts, such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Yugoslavia, Chechnya, and Northern Ireland, among others. He won several awards for his journalism. 

Jonathan established television operations for the BBC in Brussels and Frankfurt and operated in many conflict zones worldwide.

For five years, he presented television news on BBC1, BBC World News, and the BBC News Channel.

After leaving the BBC, he spent almost twelve years as Managing Director at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Here, Jonathan frequently met with world leaders as part of negotiating agreements and helped run a multilateral institution that invests 12 billion Euros a year across three continents. 

Beyond Geopolitics

Following his career as a BBC journalist, Jonathan made documentaries on reggae music, Babylon, mass tourism, mercenaries in Africa, among other topics.

When he isn’t advising presidents, governments and multinational companies on geopolitics, he indulges his love of music on vinyl, presenting two weekly radio shows which are broadcast on forty commercial radio stations to an audience of half a million listeners.

Contact Us

Jonathan Charles is also available for Speaking Engagements at Great British Speakers.