Martin Belam
Martin Belam blends live rolling news coverage with quizzes and genre television recaps, specialising in news-driven entertainment and pop culture for the Guardian. His work sits at the intersection of major news events, fan-focused television coverage and interactive formats that turn the week’s stories into games and guides. He brings long experience in digital journalism and product design to coverage that moves comfortably between breaking news, newsletters and entertainment franchises.
Live blogs and major news events
Belam is a senior live blogger at the Guardian, covering major breaking news events and crises.
His live blogging portfolio includes sustained coverage of the war in Ukraine, European politics and wider global developments, such as updates on Russian drone attacks and European leaders’ responses. He also covers the crisis in the Middle East, Covid, and US and UK politics through rolling formats that follow stories across the day.
In these live blogs he tracks official statements, diplomatic moves and on-the-ground developments, keeping a single thread open as events unfold. This news-side work gives him a vantage point on how politics, conflict and global institutions shape the cultural moment he also writes about.
Newsletters and daily news digests
Belam writes for the Guardian’s First Thing newsletter, a daily summary of top stories from the US and the day’s must-reads.
Recent editions have focused on issues such as the cost of the Iran war and congressional votes on ending US military action, as well as regional security concerns around missile and drone attacks. Before moving to First Thing he spent a period as one of the main writers on First Edition, another Guardian daily news briefing. His newsletter work distils complex stories into clear, headline-led rundowns that highlight key facts and context from politics, conflict and policy.
This habit of synthesis runs through his broader output, including his quizzes and entertainment coverage, which often draw directly on the week’s news agenda.
Thursday quiz and interactive formats
Belam is the regular writer of the Guardian’s Thursday quiz, a weekly news quiz built around recent events. The series’ headlines show how he uses current stories as question material, mixing topics such as AI warnings, US midterm politics and Dolly Parton’s latest moves into a single quiz. He sets this quiz for the Guardian’s website every week, turning the news cycle into an interactive format that rewards close attention to politics, technology, culture and sport. Beyond the Thursday quiz, he writes other quizzes and interactive pieces that treat news as something readers can play with as well as follow.
This emphasis on format and user experience reflects his background in digital product design and information architecture.
Doctor Who, Eurovision and entertainment coverage
Alongside hard news, Belam covers entertainment franchises with a particular focus on Doctor Who and Eurovision. He writes episode-by-episode recaps of Doctor Who, tracking plot developments and production changes and situating them within the show’s long history. His coverage includes pieces on the future of the series after Russell T Davies’s exit, looking at how showrunner changes and creative direction affect the programme’s prospects and identity.
His Eurovision work covers the contest as a cultural and media event, connecting performances and staging to broader trends in pop music and broadcasting. He also writes about movies and film tropes, including essays that defend animals unfairly maligned on screen, which show an interest in how storytelling choices shape audience perceptions.
This entertainment strand is rooted in fandom but informed by his wider experience of news, social media and digital platforms.
Cross-beat experience and digital journalism
Belam’s current coverage is built on more than two decades of work in digital journalism, user experience and social media for major media and technology brands. He has held roles at the Guardian focused on user experience and social media, including responsibilities for new formats and audience engagement.
He has also worked on digital products for organisations such as Sony and the BBC, and has written widely about journalism, digital media and design on his own sites and for industry publications.
He has edited and written short books and ebooks on topics including the Olympics, Facebook and Doctor Who, which underline his interest in how platforms and long-running cultural properties evolve over time. This blend of product, social and editorial experience informs the way he approaches stories, whether he is running a breaking news live blog, writing a newsletter, or unpacking the dynamics of a genre television show.
4 more entertainment journalists.
Abbie Bray
Abbie Bray reports on how television affects the people on screen and the viewers at home. She is acting head of Screen Time, working across national and regional titles on dramas, soaps, factual entertainment and live broadcasts. Her focus includes Death in Paradise, Beyond Paradise, Vera and Midsomer Murders, as well as Gardeners’ World, Our Yorkshire Farm, Countryfile, Garden Rescue and A Place in the Sun. She also covers presenters, long-running series, sports broadcasts, viewer complaints and Ofcom scrutiny. Before Screen Time, she was a TV reporter for Metro and the Daily Express, then held weekend TV editor, assistant TV editor and deputy showbiz editor roles. Her reporting links TV formats to grief, career changes, casting, audience reaction and the personal stakes behind live coverage.
Adam Bloodworth
Adam Bloodworth covers how culture, nightlife and luxury spaces shape modern entertainment and everyday life. He is a Features Journalist and Deputy Life&Style Editor at City A.M., where he has written and commissioned culture and lifestyle features since 2022. He is also Deputy Editor of City A.M. The Magazine. His beat includes film, TV, music, theatre, things to do, restaurants, hotels, members’ clubs, fashion and LGBTQ storytelling. He has written for The Telegraph, The Independent, VICE, Metro and HuffPost UK. He reviews gigs, theatre and restaurants, profiles venues and reports on live-music infrastructure. His work often combines criticism with first-person experience, judging places and performances by their atmosphere, stories and audience experience. He also interviews public figures and appears as an on-air commentator.
Adam England
Adam England stands out for linking celebrity news to wider trends in music, sport, health and everyday life. He is a writer-reporter on the news team at People, where he covers entertainment, culture and lifestyle through timely stories and evergreen explainers. His work has appeared in publications including The Guardian, The Independent, Vice, Dazed, Healthline and Verywell Mind. He writes about music, screen entertainment, celebrity careers, fan communities, sport, cultural history, mental health, travel, pets, relationships and social affairs. His explainers include the 2023 NFL Draft and Bruce Lee’s death. He also reports on sensitive celebrity health stories, such as Lionel Richie cutting a concert short after feeling dizzy. His reporting is clear, factual and service-driven. He strips back jargon and mythology, uses lived experience and expert input where relevant, and avoids sensationalism.
Adam White
Adam White is features editor across culture and lifestyle at The Independent. He writes and commissions long-form features, essays and interviews on film, television, music and entertainment. His work examines how fame, fandom and taste shape contemporary culture, from streaming thrillers and celebrity disclosure to festivals, live music and creative careers. His writing has appeared in Dazed, Huck, i-D, Playboy, The Telegraph, The i, Little White Lies, The Quietus and Nylon. He uses a strong, voice-led style that combines reporting, observation and personal immersion. His streaming coverage treats television as something experienced as much as watched. His celebrity essays connect star narratives to wider questions about privacy and public image. His festival writing focuses on audiences and live events as cultural rituals. His interviews with film-makers and authors rely on rapport, extended stories and reflection.