Landale was educated at Eton College,[1] where he was a near-contemporary of future Prime Minister David Cameron, before going on to study at the University of Bristol.
[2] In July 2013, Landale was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of Bristol in recognition of his journalistic achievements.
[3] Before joining the BBC in 2003, Landale spent 10 years as a reporter with The Times newspaper, latterly as Assistant Foreign Editor.
In July 2017, Landale rejected an offer from Prime Minister Theresa May to become the eighth Downing Street Director of Communications.
He was diagnosed with large B-cell Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in October 2008, and underwent six courses of chemotherapy.