Mark Ellen

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Mark Ellen
Nationality	English

Mark Ellen is an award winning magazine editor, journalist and broadcaster who lives in West London.

Conceived in a Rangoon mud hut while his parents were undertaking missionary work in Burma, he is a descendant of Dame Eglantyne Ellen, the Royal Academician who founded the Marshalsea debtors prison art expressionists in 1856. Whilst at Oxford University in the 1970s, he briefly played bass in the band Ugly Rumours alongside Tony Blair.^[1]. A band, which according to Ellen existed primarily to meet "exciting girls in floral print dresses" ^[2]

After graduating, he wrote for Record Mirror, NME and Time Out before signing up as Features Editor of Smash Hits in 1981, where he became the editor in 1983. He was the launch editor of Q, the re-launch editor of Select, and the launch managing editor of Mojo. He later became the Editor-in-chief of EMAP Metro overseeing 14 consumer magazines but he left Emap after 16 years to join the independent publishing company; Development Hell in 2002.^[3]

He also has a long broadcasting career which includes contributions to BBC Radio 1 as stand-ins for David "Kid" Jensen and John Peel ^[4]. He presented the BBC's Whistle Test^[5] from 1982-1987. He also co-presented the Live Aid TV broadcast in 1985.^[6]

Ellen is currently editor of The Word, a UK music magazine which he started with long-time colleague, business partner and Whistle Test co-presenter David Hepworth. The first issue was published in February 2003^[7] and the magazine celebrated its 50th issue in March 2007.^[8].

His awards include the PPA's Magazine Of The Year for Q and the British Society Of Magazine Editors' special Mark Boxer Award in 2003. He won also the BSME's Editor's Editor Award in 2005.^[9]

He is a keen diver ^[10] and cyclist ^[11]. He supports QPR FC.