John Richard English OC OOnt FRSC (born January 26, 1945) is a Canadian academic and former politician.
A native of Plattsville, Ontario, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1967 from the University of Waterloo.
He was the general editor of the Dictionary of Canadian Biography and the founding director of the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History at the University of Toronto.
English has written many books and articles, and was the official biographer of former Canadian prime minister Lester Pearson; this work was published in two volumes.
Citizen of the World: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Volume One was shortlisted for the Charles Taylor Prize for literary non-fiction in February 2007, and in January 2010, Just Watch Me: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Volume Two received the same honour.