Tony Parsons was born in 1955 in Essex. Although he had already written a novel at the age of seventeen, he worked at the Gordon's gin distillery in London until summer 1976, when he started working for the NME (New Musical Express) as a punk journalist. This took him on the road with bands like The Sex Pistols.

He married Julie Burchill, a fellow NME journalist, and they had a son, Bobby, before divorcing.

He has a regular column in The Mirror and participates in the BBC arts programme, Newsnight Review. He has also written for, among other publications, The Face, Marie Claire, The Daily Mail, Arena, The Guardian, Elle, The Daily Telegraph, The Spectator, The Sunday Times, GQ and Red.

He has now re-married, and lives in London.