Mark Steel
About Mark Steel
Mark Steel (born 4 July 1960) is an English author, broadcaster, stand-up comedian and newspaper columnist. He has made many appearances on radio and television shows as a guest panellist, and has written regular columns in The Guardian, The Independent and Daily Mirror. He presents The Mark Steel Lectures, The Mark Steel Solution, Mark Steel's in Town and the podcast What the Fuck Is Going On? He was born in Swanley, Kent, and was adopted 10 days after he was born; his adoptive father worked in insurance and his mother supplemented the family income through factory work and working as a lollipop lady.
Steel later traced his biological mother, who said she did not want to know him and died soon after; he learned she was from a Scottish working-class family with an active involvement in left-wing politics. His biological father, Joe Dwek, was an Egyptian Sephardic Jew who became a multi-millionaire Wall Street trader and a professional backgammon player. Steel documented his early life, adoption and quest to find his birth parents in an Audible audio book, Who Do I Think I Am?, released in December 2021.
Steel had various early jobs including a stint as a milkman, and acknowledges Alexei Sayle as an influence. In 1992 he presented the satirical radio show The Mark Steel Solution on BBC Radio 5, which ran to four series. His comic autobiography It's Not a Runner Bean (1996) led to a column in The Guardian. He has appeared frequently on Have I Got News For You, Room 101, Mock the Week and the Graham Norton Show. Mark Steel's in Town has won a Sony Award, Writers' Guild Award and Chortle Awards, and in 2014 he won the British Press Award for Broadsheet Columnist for his column in The Independent.
Videos (51)
Videos 25 to 48 of 51.
1:19Sophie Willan talks about her real Mum
1.4K views
1:18What Will Happen To Keir Starmer?
1.3K views
37:01Ep 176 with Dawn Butler (Part 1) : I Got Kicked Out Of Parliament For Telling The Truth
1.2K views
1:17VAR
1.2K views
38:44Ep 188 with Andy Parsons Pt 1: Sport Is Never Just Sport
1.2K views
53:32Ep 187 with Gary Younge Pt 1: Immigration was never the problem!
1.2K views
1:301 in 6 men have been assaulted or abused
1K views
51:54Ep 192 with Russell Warfield Pt 2: The future of the Green Party is this..
917 views
1:21White Male Stand-Up
916 views
55:35Ep 181 with Mothin Ali (Part 2): We're Here To Replace Labour
908 views
1:33The Labour Party Are Out Of Ideas
873 views
57:53Ep 179 with Dr Julia Grace Patterson
868 views
46:46Ep 183 with Rachel Millward Pt 2: We Are Sleepwalking Into Disaster!
835 views
1:18WHY KEIR STARMER FAILED SO QUICKLY
759 views
1:28KEIR STARMER TAKING FREEBIES
608 views
34:40Ep 177 with Laura Smyth (Part 1) : Gigging is so real, we are very lucky
529 views
1:01:29Ep 187 with Gary Younge Pt 2: History Isn’t What You Think
496 views
38:35Ep 177 with Laura Smyth (Part 2) : We're Being Told To Hate Each other
415 views
44:28Ep 180 with Emma Warren Pt 1: This is what happens when you take away youth services!
413 views
45:04Ep 190 with Rosie Jones Pt 1: My Disability Is Not The Most interesting Thing About Me!
353 views
44:25Ep 180 with Emma Warren (Part 2): We've Abandoned A Whole Generation
297 views
38:17Ep 176 with Dawn Butler (Part 2) : Now Is The Time For A Revolution
274 views
1:09Andy Burnham owes his leadership to The Green Party
273 views
1:28MORGAN MCSWEENEY & PETER MANDELSON
265 viewsGuest appearances (6)
Videos on other comedians' channels featuring Mark Steel.
Guest appearances 1 to 6 of 6.
1:13:30"The Left Used to Believe in Winning People Over" - Mark Steel
Konstantin Vadimovich Kisin
87.3K views
1:16:25Mark Steel - Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast
Richard Herring
49.1K views
15:28GROOMING GANG U-TURN & DOOMY G7 | Geoff Norcott & Mark Steel
Geoffrey Frank Norcott
7.1K views
44:20KEIR STARMER WITH A GUITAR? | Feat. Mark Steel
Geoffrey Frank Norcott
3.8K views
3:55Mark Steel on his voice's recovery after cancer treatment - from RHLSTP Book Club 131
Richard Herring
3.7K views
13:10LABOUR’S LOWEST EVER POLL | Geoff Norcott & Mark Steel
Geoffrey Frank Norcott
3.1K viewsChannels on this page: Konstantin Vadimovich Kisin, Richard Herring, Geoffrey Frank Norcott
Frequently asked questions
Who is Mark Steel?
Mark Steel (born 4 July 1960) is an English author, broadcaster, stand-up comedian and newspaper columnist who has written columns for The Guardian, The Independent and Daily Mirror.
What radio and TV shows is Mark Steel known for?
He presents The Mark Steel Lectures, The Mark Steel Solution and Mark Steel's in Town, and has appeared frequently on Have I Got News For You, Mock the Week and the Graham Norton Show.
What awards has Mark Steel won?
Mark Steel's in Town has won a Sony Award, Writers' Guild Award and Chortle Awards, and in 2014 he won the British Press Award for Broadsheet Columnist.
What did Mark Steel reveal about his family background?
Steel was adopted 10 days after birth; he later traced his biological parents, learning his mother came from a left-wing Scottish working-class family and his father, Joe Dwek, was a Wall Street trader and backgammon player.
What books has Mark Steel written?
His books include the autobiographies It's Not a Runner Bean and Reasons to Be Cheerful, and Vive la Revolution, an account of the French Revolution.
Comedians similar to Mark Steel
Same comedic style, across countries
