About the Author

Professor Anthony Kessel is a public health physician, GP and academic. Anthony is currently National Deputy Medical Director (Specialised Services) for NHS England, prior to which he was Clinical Director (National Clinical Policy) at NHSE. Previously, Anthony worked for a decade as Director of Global Public Health / Responsible Officer at Public Health England and National Director of Public Health Strategy, Director of R&D and Medical Director at the Health Protection Agency. Anthony is also Senior Public Health Advisor to the Football Association (FA), and advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO) on public health. Earlier in his career, Anthony was Director of Public Health and Medical Director at Camden Primary Care Trust (2004–2009). Across Anthony’s medical work, he has a passion for improving mental health and wellbeing.

In parallel, Anthony holds a university position as Honorary Professor at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, where he co-established the International Programme for Ethics, Public Health and Human Rights. Anthony has over 100 publications in areas of public health, epidemiology, environmental health and the medical humanities. Anthony is a former Trustee Director of BookTrust, a Council member of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), former Trustee (and vice-chair) of the mental health charity, Innate Health, and a former Trustee of the national charity, GambleAware. Anthony has trained as an executive coach and writes a personal column exploring his leadership work through a lens of psychological wellbeing, ‘Global Health Experience’ (https://medium.com/@AKessel).

Anthony is also an author of fiction books for children. His current, award-winning ‘DON’T DOUBT THE RAINBOW’ adventure series for middle-grade children (publisher, Crown House) is centred on 13-year-old detective, Edie Marble. The first book, The Five Clues, was published in 2021; the second, Outside Chance, was published in 2022; the third book, American Mystery came out in January 2025 with the final instalment, The Book of Names, due to be published later in 2025. To date, the books have either won or been short-listed for ten national/international awards. Threaded through the series is an approach to support mental health and resilience in this age group, focused around understanding how our psychological system works.

Anthony can be contacted via LinkedIn or email: anthony.kessel@lshtm.ac.uk