John Nicolson

John MacKenzie Nicolson (born 23 June 1961) is a Scottish journalist, broadcaster and Scottish National Party (SNP) politician.

Nicolson served as the SNP Member of Parliament (MP) for Ochil and South Perthshire from 2019 general election until the seat's abolition in 2024. He was previously the MP for East Dunbartonshire, having been elected at the 2015 general election, and defeated at the 2017 general election. He contested Alloa and Grangemouth in the 2024 election but was defeated.

He was the SNP shadow secretary of state for culture, media and sport, a member of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, chair on the All Party Parliamentary Group for Democracy & the Constitution and deputy chair of the APPG on Global LGBT+ Rights.

John Nicolson was born in Glasgow, the son of John Donald Nicolson and Marion Nicolson. His ancestry is Hebridean and Orcadian on his father's side. His mother came from Scotstoun in Glasgow. His father died of lung cancer when he was at school and aged 15.

Nicolson won a bursary to Hutchesons' Grammar School, and is the first generation of his family to go to university. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a MA (Hons.) in English literature and Politics. He was awarded a Kennedy Scholarship for postgraduate study in the United States, and was Harkness Fellow in American Government at Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University.

As a student, he won the British Isles Observer Mace (now the John Smith Memorial Mace), and World Universities Debating Championship in the same year, winning the World Championship with his debate partner Frank McKirgan at Princeton University. He returned to the Glasgow University Union in 2012 to debate against other former World Universities' Championship winners on a motion welcoming Scottish independence.

After graduating from Harvard, he worked as a speechwriter on Capitol Hill for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan specialising in Israel-Palestinian issues, the Irish peace process, and gun control.

He moved back to the UK from Washington, D.C. to work full-time for the BBC when offered a job presenting the network 'DEF 2' youth strand discussion programme Open to Question.