William McGuire "Bill" Bryson is a best-selling Anglo-American author known for his humorous books on travel, the English language, and science.

Born on December 8, 1951, in the United States, Bryson has been a resident of Britain for most of his adult life. He holds dual American and British citizenship. Bryson returned to the U.S. between 1995 and 2003.

He served as the chancellor of Durham University from 2005 to 2011. In 1995, while in the United Kingdom, Bryson authored Notes from a Small Island, an exploration of Britain. In 2003, he authored A Short History of Nearly Everything. In October 2020, he announced that he had retired from writing books. In 2022, he recorded an audiobook for Audible, The Secret History of Christmas. He has sold over 16 million books worldwide.