The Telegraph
Senior Lifestyle Writer
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About The Role
The Telegraph's Lifestyle desk provides original, entertaining and inspiring content for our readers.
In this role, you will work on the general lifestyle desk to write features, reports, interviews, ghosted first person pieces, listicles and practical how to guides, as well as also writing food and drink, car, interiors and gardening features where necessary.
Working in a fast-paced, news-driven environment you'll be confident in managing both tight daily deadlines and longer lead pieces.
You will be able to spot exclusives and opportunities for agenda setting content that will create national talking points and push the Telegraph ahead of its competitors.
Curiosity in the news and lifestyle agenda, alongside a network of key contacts, sources and experts, will be essential to ensure that you have a constant supply of ideas.
The most important aspect of the senior writer's role is to bring in scoops and exclusives, rather than waiting for stories to be allotted to them by the commissioning editor. To this end, the senior writer should be up to date with current celebrity, parenting and relationship stories, studies and surveys, and have a good network to enable them to source case studies either through social media, or other case study finding channels.
Closing Date
August 27th 2026
Key Responsibilities
- Providing all types of high-quality content - with a particular expertise in human interest stories (compelling interviews, ghost-written first person testimony, reported pieces). Able to turn their hand to trend and nostalgia-led pieces, celebrity interviews and listicles.
- Highly engaged with the news agenda and confident in pitching articles with powerful human narratives at their heart
- Able to deliver clean copy to tight deadlines.
- Constantly seeking out original ideas for exclusive lifestyle content - liaising with teams such as visual journalism and video to explore innovative ways to tell stories.
- Building a strong contact book.
- Conducting interviews and carrying out investigations when required
- Bringing in case study-led human interest features - this means following up on news stories (such as murders, arrests, disaster, tragedy etc) and approaching families months or weeks down the line to land stories to tie in with anniversaries or the end of court cases
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Key Skills
- A proven track record of delivering ghosted first person, write throughs and interviews with high profile subjects to tight deadlines.
- A proven track record of finding, following up on and bringing in exclusive content.
- Ability to judge and suggest what imagery is required.
- Ability to deal with sensitive stories and vulnerable case studies.
- Good investigative and persuasion skills.
- Flexibility and availability to travel at short notice.
- Full knowledge of media law is required.
- Understand what drives digital engagement in a subscription-based organisation.
- A good understanding of the Telegraph's tone and audience
Our benefits
The nature of our industry means life at the Telegraph Media Group is fast-paced, demanding, and interesting. We also want it to be rewarding for everyone who works here by creating a suite of benefits that contribute to lifestyle choices and leisure activities. From dynamic working opportunities, medical cover, and parental leave (six months fully paid maternity leave and enhanced paternity/partner leave), to life assurance and season ticket loans, you can choose from a range of flexible benefits, designed to support your lifestyle and help you achieve a healthy work-life balance.
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Training and development
With support from your manager and colleagues, you'll also have access to a variety of training and development opportunities through The Academy. Covering a range of personal and professional skills, our courses enable you to develop an enjoyable and rewarding career.
Our commitment to inclusion
At Telegraph Media Group, we foster a diverse and inclusive workplace and we are committed to building a team that reflects a wide variety of skills, perspectives and backgrounds. We believe in equality of opportunity and welcome candidates from all backgrounds, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion and/or belief.
We are proud to be a Level 3 Disability Confident Leader as part of the government's Disability Confident Scheme. If you are disabled or have a long-term health condition and would like support in applying for any of our roles or if you require any reasonable adjustments in the recruitment process with us, please make us aware.
To find out more about Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at Telegraph Media Group, and for more information on our purpose, beliefs, and people values, please visit our website.
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