Peter Stanford is a writer, journalist, broadcaster and prison reform campaigner. His books include biographies of the Labour Cabinet minister and penal reformer, Lord Longford; the Poet Laureate, C Day-Lewis; Bronwen Astor; and Cardinal Basil Hume. His writings on the history, theology and cultural significance of religious ideas range from Martin Luther: Catholic Dissident, The Devil: A Biography, Heaven: A Traveller's Guide and The She-Pope: The Legend of Pope Joan to Catholics and Sex, Pilgrimage: Journeys of Meaning, How To Read a Graveyard, Judas: The Troubling History of the Renegade Apostle, Angels: A Visible and Invisible History and If These Stones Could Talk: A History of Christianity Through Twenty Buildings. His books have been translated into twelve languages. He is currently working on a biography of the architect Antoni Gaudi to be published in 2026 to mark the 100th anniversary of his death.

A former editor of the Catholic Herald (1988-1992), he writes features for the Daily and Sunday Telegraph titles and has an interview column in the Tablet.

He has presented television documentaries including the award-winning Channel 4 series, Catholics and Sex, BBC 1's The She Pope and Channel 5's The Mission. On radio, he has appeared as a regular panelist on the BBC Radio 4’s s The Moral Maze and Vice or Virtue and hosted Radio 2’s Good Morning Sunday. He was one of the BBC commentary team for the papal visit to Britain in 2010. His biography of Lord Longford was the basis for Channel 4's 2006 multi-award winning drama, Longford. 

Born in 1961 and raised in Birkenhead, he was chair of the spinal injuries charity, Aspire, for 20 years until September 2011. He has been director of the Longford Trust for penal reform since 2002.  In 2015 he was a member of the government-commissioned review panel headed by Dame Sally Coates into prison education. 

He lives in London with his wife, and their two children.