British journalist Toby Young achieved his greatest success through his biggest failure. After spending five miserable years trying in vain to make it big in the U.S. as a contributing editor at Vanity Fair magazine, Young wrote a memoir called How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, which became a surprise hit and was later adapted into a movie starring Simon Pegg and Kirsten Dunst. Prior to his adventures in the Big Apple, Young had received a top-notch education at Brasenose College in Oxford and Trinity College in Cambridge, as well as at Harvard, which he attended as a Fulbright Scholar. Following his success with How to Lose Friends, Young returned to London and became a regular contributor to The Evening Standard and The Guardian, using his signature obnoxiousness as a springboard toward serious notoriety. He also appeared on-stage in the West End musical adaptation of his book, as well as in a political sex farce called Who's the Daddy?, which he cowrote with Lloyd Evans. The production won the Best New Comedy Award at the 2006 Theatregoers' Choice Awards.
Toby Young
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