Phil Hammond

Philip James Hammond (born 1 January 1962) is a British physician, broadcaster, comedian and commentator on health issues in the United Kingdom.

He first came into the public spotlight writing a column for The Independent newspaper, where he wrote with a strong pro-patient rights line and as Private Eye's medical correspondent "MD".

[3] Hammond qualified as a doctor in 1987, having studied at Girton College, Cambridge and St Thomas' Hospital Medical School, London.

and was one of two doctor-cum-comics who captained teams on a Channel Five medical quiz, Tibs and Fibs, hosted by Tony Slattery.

Hammond was a presenter for BBC Radio Bristol from 2007, broadcasting on Saturday mornings until, on 21 August 2018, he was sacked from the show, after announcing his intention to stand for election as an MP for the National Health Action Party, in the constituency of Jacob Rees-Mogg.

[9][10] Hammond was one of those who broke the story about the Bristol heart scandal in 1992 and was later called to give evidence at the subsequent enquiry.

[11] In 2009, Hammond broke allegations about pathology misdiagnosis in Bristol, the subject of an independent inquiry chaired by Jane Mishcon.

In July 2011, Hammond co-authored a Private Eye special investigation with Andrew Bousfield called Shoot the Messenger, exposing the shocking treatment of NHS whistleblowers and how large sums of public money are used to silence them and cover up their concerns.

In 2021, he published Dr Hammond's Covid Casebook, a collection of 30 of his fortnightly columns in Private Eye which formed a detailed analysis of the management of the COVID-19 pandemic in England.

He ran in the Bristol West constituency against William Waldegrave, the then Secretary of State for Health, capturing 87 votes.

[18] In August 2018 he announced his intention to stand for election as an MP for the National Health Action Party, in the North East Somerset constituency of Jacob Rees-Mogg.