Richard Atkinson

Richard Atkinson is a publisher who has been behind some of the most successful cookbooks of the past two decades. He lives in London but has a deep-rooted affection for the northern fells, the land of his ancestors. It was his chance discovery of an unpublished cookery manuscript, handwritten in 1806 by his four-times great-grandmother, Bridget Atkinson, which prompted the cascade of dark family revelations that are at the heart of his debut, Mr Atkinson's Rum Contract: The Story of a Tangled Inheritance, published by Fourth Estate in 2020. It was shortlisted for the RSL Christopher Bland Prize 2021.