Childhood and Education Journey of Stephen Fry in Timeline

How education and upbringing influenced the life of Stephen Fry. A timeline of key moments.

Sir Stephen Fry is a multifaceted English personality, notable as an actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator, and writer. He gained recognition through the comedy duo Fry and Laurie, starring in shows like 'A Bit of Fry & Laurie' and 'Jeeves and Wooster.' He also appeared in 'Alfresco' and 'Blackadder.' Beyond entertainment, Fry is actively involved in mental health advocacy, serving as president of Mind since 2011. His contributions to mental health awareness, environmental causes, and charity were recognized with a knighthood in 2025.

Sections (5)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Challenges & Struggles

1992: Rector of the University of Dundee

From 1992 to 1995, Stephen Fry served two consecutive terms as the student-elected Rector of the University of Dundee.

1995: Honorary Degree from the University of Dundee

In 1995, Stephen Fry was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws (LL.D. h.c.) by the University of Dundee, which named their main Students' Association bar after his novel The Liar. He also served as Rector of the University of Dundee.

1997: Fry's website

In 1997, Stephen Fry started his own website.

1998: Rector of the University of Dundee

From 1995 to 1998, Stephen Fry served two consecutive terms as the student-elected Rector of the University of Dundee.

1999: Honorary Doctorate from the University of East Anglia

In 1999, Stephen Fry was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Letters (D.Litt. h.c.) by the University of East Anglia.

2001: Stopped using cocaine

Stephen Fry stopped using cocaine in 2001.

2002: The New Adventures of Mr Stephen Fry website

In 2002, Stephen Fry's website 'The New Adventures of Mr Stephen Fry' was launched.

2003: Pipe Smoker of the Year

In 2003, Stephen Fry was the last person to be named Pipe Smoker of the Year before the award was discontinued.

2005: Attended Charles and Camilla's Wedding

In 2005, Stephen Fry attended the then-Prince Charles's wedding to Camilla Parker Bowles.

2005: Did not vote in general election

In 2005, Stephen Fry did not vote in the general election because of the stance of the Labour and Conservative parties regarding the Iraq War.

2005: Honorary Degree from Anglia Ruskin University

In 2005, Stephen Fry was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of the University (D.Univ. h.c.) from Anglia Ruskin University.

2005: Ashes Fever DVD Interview

In 2005, Stephen Fry was interviewed for the Ashes Fever DVD, reporting on England's victory over Australia in the Ashes series.

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2005: Patron of Listening Books

Since 2005, Fry has been the patron of UK audiobook charity Listening Books.

2006: Starred in The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive and Who Do You Think You Are?

In 2006, Fry's documentary Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive won an Emmy Award, and he appeared on the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are?, tracing his maternal family tree.

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2006: President of the Great Fen Project

Since 2006, Fry has been the president of the Great Fen Project, supporting nature and wildlife conservation.

August 2007: BBC Four Stephen Fry Programming

In August 2007, BBC Four dedicated two nights of programming to Stephen Fry in celebration of his 50th birthday, including the documentary Stephen Fry: 50 Not Out.

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September 2007: First blog on smartphones

In September 2007, Stephen Fry started his first blog, featuring a 6,500-word "blessay" on smartphones.

September 2007: BBC Two Repeat of Stephen Fry Programming

In September 2007, the weekend programming dedicated to Stephen Fry on BBC Four was repeated on BBC Two.

January 2008: Broken arm while filming Last Chance to See

In January 2008, Stephen Fry broke his arm while filming Last Chance to See in Brazil, slipping between a boat and the dock and snapping his right humerus.

February 2008: Launch of Stephen Fry's Podgrams

In February 2008, Stephen Fry launched his private podcast series, Stephen Fry's Podgrams, and a forum that included discussions on depression and his activities.

2008: Formation of SamFry Ltd

In 2008, Fry formed SamFry Ltd with Andrew Sampson to produce and fund new material and manage his website.

October 2009: Brief Twitter Departure

In October 2009, Fry temporarily distanced himself from Twitter after receiving criticism, but retracted his departure announcement the following day.

November 2009: One Million Twitter Followers

In November 2009, Stephen Fry's Twitter account reached one million followers, which he commemorated with a humorous video blog.

2009: Significant weight loss

In 2009, Stephen Fry appeared on BBC's Top Gear and explained that he had lost a significant amount of weight, attributing the weight loss to walking while listening to audiobooks.

2009: Letter to younger self and Intelligence Squared debate

In 2009, The Guardian published a letter from Stephen Fry addressing his younger self. Later that year, he and Christopher Hitchens participated in an "Intelligence Squared" debate against Ann Widdecombe and Archbishop John Onaiyekan about the Catholic Church.

2009: Defamation Act 2009

In 2009, the Defamation Act 2009 was enacted, under which Fry was investigated in May 2017 for blasphemy due to comments made in an interview.

2009: Vice-President of Fauna and Flora International

Since 2009, Fry has been the vice-president of Fauna and Flora International, an international NGO.

July 2010: Honorary Fellow of Cardiff University

On 13 July 2010, Stephen Fry was made an honorary fellow of Cardiff University.

August 2010: Norwich City Board of Directors

In August 2010, Fry joined the board of directors at Norwich City Football Club, expressing immense pride and excitement.

October 2010: Temporary Twitter Exit

In October 2010, Fry left Twitter for a few days following press criticism of a quote from an interview, later explaining it was to avoid being affected by the article.

November 2010: Two Million Twitter Followers

In November 2010, Fry celebrated reaching two million followers on Twitter with a blog entry detailing his experiences and opinions on the platform.

2010: End of relationship with Daniel Cohen

In 2010, Stephen Fry's 15-year relationship with Daniel Cohen ended.

January 2011: Honorary Doctorate from the University of Sussex

On 28 January 2011, Stephen Fry was made an honorary Doctor of the University (D.Univ. h.c.) by the University of Sussex, in recognition for his work campaigning for people suffering from mental health problems, bipolar disorder and HIV.

2011: Comic Relief Telethon

For the Comic Relief telethon in 2011, Fry represented a new flavor of Walkers crisps, Stephen Fry Up, inspired by the full English breakfast.

2011: Support for Alternative Vote referendum

In 2011, Stephen Fry appeared in campaign literature to support changing the British electoral system to alternative vote.

March 2012: Four Million Twitter Followers

On March 11, 2012, Stephen Fry announced that he had surpassed four million followers on Twitter and dedicated the day to Douglas Adams's diamond jubilee.

October 2012: Honorary Life Membership of the Union of UEA Students

On 18 October 2012, Stephen Fry was awarded Honorary Life Membership of the Union of UEA Students in recognition of his public support for LGBT+ rights.

2012: Suicide attempt

In 2012, Stephen Fry attempted suicide, one of several attempts throughout his life.

August 2013: Call for boycott of Sochi Winter Olympics

In August 2013, Stephen Fry published an open letter calling for a boycott of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi due to concerns over the persecution of LGBT people in Russia.

2013: Started taking medication for cyclothymia

In 2013, Stephen Fry said that he had started taking medication for the first time in the previous year, in an attempt to control his cyclothymia.

2013: Interview with Richard Herring about suicide attempt

In an interview with Richard Herring in 2013, Stephen Fry revealed that he had attempted suicide the previous year while filming abroad, taking a "huge number of pills and a huge [amount] of vodka".

February 2014: Honorary President of Proud Canaries

In February 2014, Fry became the honorary president of Proud Canaries, a supporters' group for Norwich City's LGBT fans.

2014: Paddington Bear Statue Design

In 2014, Fry designed a Paddington Bear statue for a London display before the film's release, later auctioned to benefit the NSPCC.

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2014: Sochi Winter Olympics

Stephen Fry called for a boycott of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi due to concerns over the persecution of LGBT people in Russia.

2014: More Fool Me Memoir

Stephen Fry wrote about his cocaine use in his memoir More Fool Me in 2014.

January 2015: Marriage to Elliott Spencer

In January 2015, British tabloid The Sun reported that Stephen Fry would marry his partner, comedian Elliott Spencer, and on 17 January, Fry married Spencer at Dereham in Norfolk.

June 2015: Desert Island Discs Guest

In June 2015, Stephen Fry appeared as the guest on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, selecting String Quartet No. 14 by Beethoven as his favorite piece, Four Quartets by T. S. Eliot as his book choice, and "canvasses, easels, brushes, an instruction manual" as his luxury item.

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June 2015: GivingTales UNICEF Support

In June 2015, Stephen Fry supported the children's fairy tale app GivingTales in aid of UNICEF along with other British celebrities.

December 2015: Membership of The Magic Circle

In December 2015, Stephen Fry was awarded membership of The Magic Circle in an episode of QI.

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2015: Criticism of Paul Dacre

In 2015, Stephen Fry stated that Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre had done more to damage Britain than any single person.

2015: Interview with Gay Byrne

In 2015, during an interview with Gay Byrne, Fry questioned God's existence and the problem of suffering, particularly bone cancer in children, leading to over five million views of the video within days and later a blasphemy investigation.

January 2016: Norwich City Ambassador

In January 2016, Fry stepped down from his Board position at Norwich City Football Club to become the "Norwich City Ambassador".

February 2016: Twitter Account Deletion

On February 15, 2016, Fry deleted his Twitter account after facing criticism for a tweet about Jenny Beavan's outfit at the BAFTAs.

April 2016: Rubin Report Appearance

In April 2016, Fry appeared on The Rubin Report, discussing groupthink and his potential return to Twitter.

August 2016: Return to Twitter

In August 2016, Stephen Fry returned to Twitter after a period of absence.

2017: Patron of the Norwich Film Festival

In 2017, Stephen Fry became the latest patron of the Norwich Film Festival.

February 2018: Prostate cancer diagnosis and operation

In February 2018, Stephen Fry announced that he was recovering from an operation to treat prostate cancer, involving the removal of the prostate and 11 adjacent lymph nodes.

2018: Sport Relief's mental health awareness

In 2018, Stephen Fry, alongside Nadiya Hussain and Olly Alexander, was part of Sport Relief's attempt to raise awareness of mental health.

2018: Blasphemy Article Removed

In 2018, the article on blasphemy was removed from the Irish Constitution following a referendum.

December 2020: Radiotherapy after prostate removal

In December 2020, Stephen Fry said he was having some radiotherapy, as is sometimes required after removal of the prostate to mop up remaining prostate cancer cells.

2020: Acquisition of Austrian citizenship

In 2020, Stephen Fry acquired Austrian citizenship as a descendant of persons persecuted by Nazism, thus regaining the citizenship his ancestors forcibly lost.

March 2021: Received Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID vaccine

In March 2021, Stephen Fry hailed the "wonderful moment" of receiving the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID vaccine at Westminster Abbey.

June 2021: Twitter Following

As of June 2021, Stephen Fry had 12.4 million followers on Twitter.

November 2022: Departure from Twitter and Joining Mastodon

In November 2022, Fry left Twitter again and joined Mastodon during the same month.

September 2023: Fall after AI conference

On 14 September 2023, Stephen Fry was taken to hospital after he fell about 6 ft onto a concrete floor when exiting the stage following a conference on artificial intelligence at The O2 Arena in Greenwich, sustaining injuries to his ribs and legs.

2023: Remarks on Jewish heritage

In 2023, during an 'Alternative Christmas message' broadcast on Channel 4, Stephen Fry remarked that he was proud of his Jewish heritage.

May 2024: Garrick Club Vote

In May 2024, Stephen Fry was among the members of the Garrick Club who spoke in favor of the admission of women members, leading to a successful vote for the change.

2034: 'Step Hen Fry' clone speaks from 2034

In November 2009 Fry commemorated the million-followers milestone with a humorous video blog in which a 'Step Hen Fry' clone speaks from the year 2034, where MySpace, Facebook and Twitter have combined to form 'Twit on MyFace'.