Katy Balls

This article is about the British journalist. For the American swimmer, see Catie Ball. For the British rower, see Katie Ball.

Kathryn (Katy) Balls^[2] (born 12 February 1989) is a British journalist. She is political editor of The Spectator.^[3][4]

Katy Balls
Balls in 2020
Born	(1989-02-12) 12 February 1989 (age 36)[1] Aberdeen, Scotland
Alma mater	University of Durham
Occupation	Journalist
Years active	2013–present
Employer	The Spectator

Early life

Born in Aberdeen,^[5] Balls grew up in North Berwick and attended North Berwick High School.^[6][7][8] She studied at the University of Durham, where she wrote for the university paper Palatinate on travel and music.^[9][10][11] She graduated from Durham with a 2:1 degree in Philosophy in 2010.^[12]

Career

Balls' media career began at The Daily Telegraph with the Mandrake column.^[13][14] She was diary editor at The Spectator, became a political correspondent for it in December 2016, was appointed deputy political editor in January 2019,^[15][16][17] and promoted to political editor in January 2023.^[18]

Balls writes a fortnightly column on Westminster politics for i.^[19] Her column was nominated for Political Commentary of the Year at the 2017 Press Awards.^[20] She hosts a podcast entitled Women With Balls.^[21] Balls has made several television appearances, including The Bolt Report, Good Morning Britain, Sky News, Politics Live, The Andrew Marr Show, and Have I Got News for You.^[22][23]

Personal life

Balls is married to Max Bye, son of Ruby Wax and Ed Bye.^[24][25]