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Anushka Asthana

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Anushka Asthana
BornMarch 1980 (age 46)
Scunthorpe, England, UK
EducationSt John's College, Cambridge (BA)
OccupationsJournalist, television presenter, author
Known forITV News
Co-presenter of Peston
Presenter of Today in Focus

Anushka Asthana (born March 1980) is a British journalist, television presenter and author. She is the US editor for Channel 4 News, having previously been the deputy political editor of ITV News.

Early life

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Asthana was born in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, and raised in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester, with her elder brother.[1][2] Her parents, both doctors, moved to the United Kingdom from New Delhi, India, in the 1970s.[3] Asthana attended the private school Manchester High School for Girls and studied economics at St John's College, Cambridge.[4]

Career

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Asthana joined The Observer as a general reporter in 2003, and spent several months at The Washington Post in 2006 on the Laurence Stern fellowship.[1] Later, she was a political correspondent for The Times before beginning to work for Sky News in 2013 as a political correspondent.[5][6]

In succession to Patrick Wintour, Asthana was appointed in December 2015 as the joint political editor of The Guardian, in a job share arrangement with Heather Stewart that began in early 2016.[7][8]

From 23 April 2017, Asthana covered the maternity leave of Allegra Stratton as the co-presenter of Peston on Sunday.[9] From September 2018 to 2025, Asthana co-presented ITV's Wednesday night flagship politics discussion programme Peston. She decided to leave her role as the joint political editor of The Guardian in 2018 to present its new daily podcast Today in Focus, later being promoted to editor-at-large, replacing Gary Younge.[10][11]

Asthana left The Guardian in 2021 to join ITN as the ITV News deputy political editor to Robert Peston.[12][13] She was later linked to the vacant job of BBC political editor, although she ultimately remained with ITV.[14] In December 2024, Asthana appeared on episode 9 of series 68 of BBC One's Have I Got News for You.[15]

In April 2025, Channel 4 News announced that Asthana would be joining its team in August, becoming the US editor.[16]

She is the author of Taken as Red: The Truth About Starmer's Labour (ISBN 9780008697938), published in June 2025.[17]

Personal life

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Asthana and her husband, Toby Jones (not to be confused with the actor of the same name),[2] live in London; she described him in her Guardian article as "a white Englishman who grew up in Oxfordshire". They married in 2009, in a part Hindu wedding ceremony and honeymooned in India, where they celebrated with her extended family.[18] The couple have two children.[2][19]

In 2012, Asthana's elder brother Anshu died of pneumonia aged 37 years, having received a later-in-life diagnosis of bipolar disorder.[2][19][20]

References

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  1. 1 2 Asthana, Anushka (26 November 2006). "My heart belongs to Delhi". The Observer. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Gray, Sadie (21 January 2013). "My hours trapped on a cancelled flight with my baby". Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  3. ↑ Asthana, Anushka (14 October 2013). "Uncertain Journey Towards New Life In Britain". Sky News. Archived from the original on 18 October 2013.
  4. ↑ Asthana, Anushka. "Anushka Asthana: Class of 1998". Manchester High School for Girls. Archived from the original on 16 September 2015.
  5. ↑ "Times political reporter Anushka Asthana moves to Sky News". Press Gazette. 16 May 2013. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014.
  6. ↑ Thorne, Anna (16 May 2014). "The highs and lows of the most exciting job you can do". The Oxford Student. Archived from the original on 1 July 2014.
  7. ↑ Ponsford, Dominic (11 December 2015). "Guardian 'breaks the mould' by making Anushka Asthana and Heather Stewart political editor on job share". Press Gazette. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  8. ↑ Jackson, Jasper (11 December 2015). "Anushka Asthana and Heather Stewart to share role of Guardian political editor". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  9. ↑ Peston on Sunday (20 April 2017). "Anushka Asthana". Twitter. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  10. ↑ "Guardian appoints new deputy editor and executive editorial team". The Guardian. 3 December 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  11. ↑ Asthana, Anushka (24 November 2018). "Today in Focus: our new podcast bringing you the world in 20 minutes". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  12. ↑ Asthana, Anushka [@AnushkaAsthana] (23 March 2021). "Really excited to be joining ITV news as deputy political editor to @peston working with the brilliant @amberdebotton once more! Really looking forward to joining a great team..." (Tweet). Retrieved 31 March 2021 – via Twitter.
  13. ↑ Wilson, Amy (30 March 2021). "ITV News hires Anushka Asthana as deputy political editor". ResponseSource. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  14. ↑ "Anushka Asthana and Sophy Ridge head all-female shortlist for BBC Political Editor". inews.co.uk. 17 March 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  15. ↑ "BBC One - Have I Got a Bit More News for You, Series 68, Episode 9". BBC. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  16. ↑ "Anushka Asthana to join Channel 4 News as US Editor". Channel 4 News. 10 April 2025. Retrieved 11 April 2025.
  17. ↑ Asthana, Anushka (3 July 2025). "After a year studying Starmer, I can tell you that he is at once a very kind man and a ruthless one". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 July 2025.
  18. ↑ Asthana, Anushka (27 December 2009). "A cross-cultural marriage is an adventure I'd recommend". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  19. 1 2 "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  20. ↑ "Late Bipolar Disorder Diagnosis".
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