1. Birth: Born on April 13, 1949, in Portsmouth, England.
  2. Education: Studied at The Leys School and later at Balliol College, Oxford, where he graduated with a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics in 1970.
  3. Early career: Started his journalism career as a staff writer for the New Statesman in the early 1970s.
  4. Move to the United States: Relocated to the US in 1981, where he continued his journalism career writing for various publications, including The Nation, The Atlantic, and Vanity Fair.
  5. Controversial works: Wrote “The Missionary Position” in 1995, a critique of Mother Teresa, and “No One Left to Lie To” in 1999, a critique of Bill Clinton.
  6. Break from the Left: Publicly broke with the political Left following the September 11 attacks in 2001 and supported the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
  7. God Is Not Great: Published “God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything” in 2007, a book criticizing religion, which established him as one of the “New Atheists” alongside Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett.
  8. Cancer diagnosis: Diagnosed with esophageal cancer in June 2010.
  9. Awards and honors: Received numerous awards and honors during his lifetime, including the National Magazine Award for Columns and Commentary in 2011.
  10. Death: Passed away on December 15, 2011, in Houston, Texas.