Helen Croydon | |
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Nationality | British |
Education | Linguistics and Japanese (Graduation) Broadcast Journalism (Post-graduation) |
Alma mater | University of Sheffield, University of Westminster |
Occupation(s) | Writer, journalist |
Notable work | Sugar Daddy Diaries: When a Fantasy became an obsession |
Helen Croydon is a British author, broadcaster and former journalist who has written for titles such as The Times, Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, Psychologies and worked for the broadcaster ITN. [1] [2] [3]
After graduating in linguistics and Japanese at the University of Sheffield, Croydon started her professional life as a tax consultant for Arthur Andersen before returning to studies to complete a post graduate diploma in broadcast journalism at University of Westminster.
She began her journalism career as a producer and breakfast newsreader for Silk FM radio station in Cheshire and then worked as a producer for ITN for five years before going freelance to focus on writing. [4]
In her early writing days she contributed mostly to The Times, The Sunday Times, The Independent and women's magazines focusing on relationship trends and dating. [5]
Her first scoop was an undercover piece for The Daily Mirror exposing an escort agency using YouTube to approach young girls and entice them into prostitution. [6]
She then became known for immersive journalism pieces, where she would partake in an event, sometimes undercover, and write about her findings. These include a Sunday Times article where she accompanied western men on a paid wife-finding tour in Ukraine, [7] trying out steroids for The Times to expose their prevalence in London gyms, [8] setting up a fake profile on an adultery website to hear the stories of men using them for an article for The Telegraph, [9] and testing the world's most expensive bed for The Sunday Times. [10] She moved on to write broader opinion pieces on the subject of feminism, social trends and questioning society's preoccupation with life-long monogamous relationships, which mirrored the themes of her first two books. [11] In more recent years, after the publication of her third book, she focused on health, fitness and environmental issues for titles including The Telegraph, Metro, Mail Online and fitness magazines. [12] [13]
2011: Sugar Daddy Diaries: When a Fantasy became an obsession (Mainstream Publishing)
2014: Screw the Fairytale: A Modern Girl’s Guide to Sex and Love (John Blake Publishing)
In a media interview in 2014 she admitted facing criticism for the subjects of her first two books and defended the charge of being anti-relationship saying. “I think romantic love is one of the biggest human highs of all. But really, do you have to share a fridge?...I wanted to write about this, question if love has to lead to a sacrifice of self-identity and whether ‘the fairytale’ is such a great life goal in the 21st century.” [14]
2018: This Girl Ran: Tales of a Party Girl Turned Triathlete (Summersdale). This book was longlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year. [15]
Croydon has appeared on programmes such as Newsnight, Sky News, BBC Breakfast, ITV's This Morning, Good Morning Britain, BBC Radio 5 Live and Woman's Hour discussing topical issues relating to her books and doing paper reviews. [16]
In 2018 she spoke about her love of triathlon, and has written several articles about how endurance sport has played a role in building resilience in other areas of life. [17] [18]
In 2015 she qualified for ITU Agegroup Triathlon World Championships and competed in Chicago for Great Britain. [19]