Peter Cardwell

Biography

Peter Cardwell is a presenter and Political Editor at TalkRadio. He has had a unique career in both the highest levels of Government and Broadcast Journalism.

A broadcaster for most of his career, he also served as special adviser – or SpAd – in the UK Government for three and a half years.  He was appointed by two successive Prime Ministers as Special Adviser to two Northern Ireland Secretaries, a Home Secretary, Housing Secretary and Justice Secretary.

As Special Adviser, he delivered tactical and strategic advice, crisis management and media handling. Peter has insight and experience of delivering Government priorities, balancing diplomatic, political, domestic and economic factors.  He has briefed many senior figures for media interviews, and recounted much of it in his book, The Secret Life of Special Advisers.

He advised Prime Ministers Theresa May and Boris Johnson, before speeches and media interviews through the maelstrom of Brexit, the Windrush Affair and two elections, and once lost a housing company £387m in a day by sending a text message. 

After being educated in Northern Ireland, he studied at St Hugh’s College, Oxford, before winning a Fulbright scholarship to the Columbia School of Journalism, New York.

He was a broadcast journalist for ten years, working for the BBC in London, Washington DC, New York, and Belfast, as well as for Sky News, Channel 5 News, UTV and ITV’s Good Morning Britain.

Peter consults in senior roles for a number of companies and is a non-executive director at a housing investment fund which provides housing for people coming out of homelessness, domestic abuse victims, care leavers and prison leavers.