Simon Kelner

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Simon Kelner (born 1957) is a British journalist and newspaper editor.

Kelner is editor-in-chief of The Independent and Independent on Sunday newspapers. He was appointed in May 1998 to succeed Andrew Marr and Rosie Boycott.

He has won several awards whilst at The Independent, including Editor of the Year. His accolades followed his radical decision in September 2003 to relaunch The Independent in compact format, which proved to have an immediate and sustained uplift in sales, and which also acted as the catalyst for other broadsheet newspapers across the world shrinking in size. His success has seen him become one of the longest-serving editors in the short history of The Independent.

He is known as something of a raconteur and as an ebullient figure in the newspaper industry. He is mentioned several times in Piers Morgan's 2005 book The Insider.

Kelner's previous jobs include sports editor of the now defunct Sunday Correspondent, editor of The Observer magazine, and also the Mail on Sunday supplement Night and Day. He qualified in journalism at Preston Polytechnic. He has an Honorary Fellowship from the University of Central Lancashire.

He is married to the cartoonist Sally Ann Lasson. His brother Martin Kelner is also a journalist. His daughter, Phoebe Kelner is a close friend of Peaches Geldof and they both attend Queen's College School in London.

Preceded by: Rosie Boycott and Andrew Marr

Editor of The Independent 1998 - present

Succeeded by: Incumbent