I am a writer and editor based in London. From 2012 - 2022, I was a staff journalist at the Financial Times. Today, I write for the New York Times, the FT, the Telegraph, the Spectator, the Critic and others on art, design, architecture, fashion, music, travel, books, modern life and popular culture. My work includes features, interviews, reviews and opinion pieces.

I like to write long, substantial features that take time and patience to research, such as this long read on Manchester’s lost music venues; this feature on London’s invented place names; this story on why grey plague is sweeping Britain; this reflection on the underappreciated style of Yoko Ono; this story about the craziest house in the Nordics; this on Finland’s ancient sauna folklore, and this on how Cyberpunk conquered 80s America.

I’m an experienced interviewer of cultural figures with strong opinions, such as Norman Foster, Kevin Rowland of Dexys, Es Devlin, Billy Childish, Pam Hogg, Laura Leezy of Khruangbin, Peter Saville, Haegue Yang, Rana Begum, Terry Hall of the Specials and many more.

And I love to write a snappy review: music, theatre, dance and books. Recent reviews include Moon Unit Zappa’s memoir, Gavin Stamp’s history of interwar British architecture, and Jon Savage’s history of how LGBTQ performers shaped popular culture.

Listen to me here on Monsters Mon Amour, architectural writer John Grindrod’s podcast, talking about the forgotten architecture of Swindon. And here, talking about Bob Dylan’s sartorial style with Kerry Shale and Lucas Hare on the Is It Rolling Bob? podcast.

My full New York Times portfolio of stories is here, my FT portfolio is here and my Telegraph portfolio is here. Take a look at my selected journalism page to see more of my latest work.

Sounds and Visions, my occasional, free Substack newsletter of cultural notes, is here.

My agent is Eleanor Birne at RCW Literary Agency.

To commission me, email helen.barrett@gmail.com

Find me on Bluesky and Instagram, where my DMs are open.