James Gill (columnist)

James Gill (born c. 1942) is a writer and a columnist from the United Kingdom.

Born in Hertfordshire and growing up in Essex, Gill emigrated to the United States in 1977. He met his first wife while residing in Kentucky, researching for his second book. They then moved to New Orleans, Louisiana inspired by Gill’s passion for jazz.

Gill worked for the Times-Picayune, in New Orleans, before joining the staff of The Advocate. He has written books about the Mardi Gras celebration.

Like John Maginnis and Jeff Crouere, Gill has made a career of lampooning Louisiana political figures. When he does go after public officials in other states or nations, he often compares them to public figures in Louisiana.As in his column "In crime and syllables, Illinois politicians win" (which appeared in the 2008 December 12 Times-Picayune) comparing Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (removed from office on 2009 January 29) to former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards; or in "Holy Nutcase!" (Times-Picayune, 2009 February 4, p. B7), recommending that New Orleans Archbishop Alfred Clifton Hughes be replaced by Austrian auxiliary bishop Gerhard Maria Wagner. Wagner resigned in mid-February 2009 amidst controversy over his statements that sin in New Orleans had brought on Hurricane Katrina. Gill was quoted in "Parish Closing Traumas Spread" by National Catholic Reporter on 2009 January 23. Gill has a loyal readership in the circulation area of the Times-Picayune.See, e.g., reader reactions “Ex Cathedra: The New Orleans Archdiocese, Project Lazarus, and the Metropolitan Community Church” and Robert E. Kennedy, "A Football-Free Island" in Times-Picayune, 2009 February 12. A comparison Gill made ("Former congressman Bob Livingston explains influence-peddling, the legal way" in Times-Picayune, 2009 August 20, Metro Edition, p. B5) between former U.S. representative William J. Jefferson (convicted of 11 felonies) and former U.S. representative Bob Livingston (a highly effective lobbyist) brought a stinging rebuke from Livingston (Bob Livingston, "Proud of career post-Congress, Livingston says" in Times-Picayune, 2009 August 23, Metro Edition, p. B4). Gill was defended by Dennis R. Schenck, "Livingston doesn't get it" in Times-Picayune, 2009 August 25, Saint Tammany Edition, p. B4, by John Nee, "Politicians don't produce" in Times-Picayune, Saint Tammany Edition, 2009 August 27, p. B4, and by Jerry R. Goolsby, "Lobbying nothing to be proud of" in Times-Picayune, 2009 August 28, Saint Tammany Edition, p. B6.

One of Gill's major topics in late 2008 and early 2009 was U.S. Representative Joseph Cao, who ousted indicted incumbent William J. Jefferson in Louisiana's 2nd congressional district—and related issues such as the New Orleans e-mail controversies and repercussions related to City Councilwoman Stacy Head. In April 2009, Gill championed of the use of unstaffed cameras to photograph and ticket motorists who ignore red lights.

Gill is the author of several books. His first book, published in 1975, is titled Racecourses of Great Britain, and contains insight into many of the horse racing grounds in the country. His second focused on the topic of breeding horses and is called Bloodstock: Breeding Winners in Europe and America, published in 1977. Published in 1997, his Lords of Misrule: Mardi Gras and the Politics of Race in New Orleans was the first book to examine the role of Mardi Gras in New Orleans' political and social development as well as the first to analyze racial segregation in the krewes, which produce the annual parades.