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Simon Akam | |
|---|---|
| Born | Cambridge, England |
| Occupation | Journalist, writer |
| Alma mater | Worcester College, Oxford |
Simon Akam is a British journalist and historian of the British Army.
Akam was born in Cambridge and educated at The Perse School, the University of Oxford, and Columbia University. [1] During his gap year in 2003, he served a short service limited commission as a second lieutenant in the British Army. [2]
Akam has written for a number of publications including The Guardian , The New York Times , Reuters , The Economist , GQ , and The Atlantic . [3]
In 2015, Akam was commissioned by Penguin Random House imprint William Heinemann to write a book on the British Army. Amid controversy, the book deal was later cancelled, and the resulting book was instead published by Scribe Publications in 2021. [4] The book's eventual publication provoked debate, with Anthony Loyd writing in the New Statesman that the book 'exposes the failures of the British army'. [5]
In 2021, Akam was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize. [6]
In 2021, Akam and Natasha Loder jointly won a Feature of the Year prize from the Medical Journalists’ Association. [7]
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