Jonathan Dean

This year, whether on Zoom or at the Newport Folk Festival, Jonathan Dean has once again met the most famous people in the world – and got them to reveal things that nobody else could. He makes his interviewees feel comfortable and like their time with him is not just another stop on the circuit. It can be hard to get new lines in arts and entertainment journalism, when stars are trekking all over the globe doing 17 interviews an hour, but Jonathan makes sure his angles are fresh by either securing exclusives or asking what has never been asked before.

George Clooney is a fine example – we all think we know him, but in a face to face interview in London, Jonathan got the icon to talk tenderly about facing up to his own mortality, age and what his sister would call her memoir: My Brother The Only Child. Written up as the convivial, wide-ranging chat it is – many lines went viral, including what Clooney thought of MeToo and facing up to turning 60. If that was a blast, Kate Winslet was a long and emotional outpouring. She is one of the most famous women in the world – someone with so much experience, you would expect her to keep quiet for an easy life. Given the right amount prompting, Jonathan led her to an extraordinary outburst about homophobia in Hollywood and how many gay actors she knows too afraid to come out. There were at least 17 other hot button topics covered, but Winslet was so pumped up about the last taboo in Hollywood, that she phoned Jonthan back a day later - for another half an hour. The story broke worldwide and instigated a campaign in the industry.