Alex Partridge: The Man Behind UNILAD, LADbible and ADHD Chatter
From building two famous social media brands to speaking openly about ADHD, his career has taken some unexpected turns.
Introduction
Alex Partridge is a British entrepreneur, author, speaker and podcast host. He is best known for creating UNILAD and helping start LADbible, two major names in online entertainment.
But business is only part of his story.
He faced a difficult legal battle. He struggled with his mental health. Then, an adult ADHD diagnosis helped him understand experiences that had troubled him for years.
Today, he hosts ADHD Chatter, writes about neurodiversity and speaks at public events.
His career looks very different now.
Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Alex Partridge |
| Nationality | British |
| Profession | Entrepreneur, author, podcaster and speaker |
| Known For | UNILAD, LADbible and ADHD Chatter |
| Hometown | Eastbourne, East Sussex, England |
| University | Oxford Brookes University |
| Education | Attended university but did not complete his degree |
| Business Background | Digital media and social publishing |
| Podcast | ADHD Chatter |
| First Book | Now It All Makes Sense |
| First Book Publication | January 2025 |
| ADHD Diagnosis | Diagnosed in adulthood, aged 34 |
| Residence | Reported living in Brighton in January 2025 |
| Official Website | alex-partridge.com |
Growing Up With Big Ideas
Alex grew up in Eastbourne, a seaside town in East Sussex.
He showed an interest in business early.
While other children were enjoying ordinary childhood activities, he was already trying small ways to earn money.
His father worked as an antiques dealer. That gave him some early exposure to buying and selling.
He tried selling unwanted antiques. He also experimented with car washing and designed a board game.
Nothing was particularly glamorous.
Still, those small projects mattered. They gave him experience in approaching customers and testing ideas.
School was another story.
In an interview with The Guardian, he recalled feeling different from other children. Anxiety was part of his life from an early age.
He described having a panic attack when he was around six.
At the time, he struggled to understand those feelings.
Years later, he would look back at those childhood experiences through the lens of his ADHD diagnosis.
University Wasn’t His Perfect Fit
Alex attended Oxford Brookes University.
But university life wasn’t easy.
He struggled with the experience and eventually left without completing his degree.
Still, he kept trying business ideas.
One attempt involved selling pizzas to students late at night.
He bought an industrial freezer using money from his student loan. His plan was simple: prepare pizzas and have students deliver them by bicycle.
The business didn’t last.
It was stopped because he lacked the required food hygiene certification.
He also worked in a museum and a nightclub during his younger years.
These experiences taught him about customers, responsibility and running small operations.
Then social media caught his attention.
That changed his career.
A Facebook Idea Became UNILAD
Around 2010, Facebook was becoming a major place for young people to find entertainment.
Alex saw an opportunity.
He began creating social media pages aimed at students. The content focused on humour, entertainment and things young audiences wanted to share.
One of those projects became UNILAD.
The early approach was straightforward.
Publish content people enjoy. Encourage sharing. Keep the audience interested.
The page attracted attention.
More people started following it. Posts circulated far beyond their original audience.
UNILAD later grew into a widely recognised digital entertainment publisher.
For Alex, the early growth proved that a social media page could become a serious business.
But popularity brought problems too.
The Story Behind LADbible
Alex also created an early LADbible Facebook page.
That name later became one of Britain’s most recognisable digital publishing brands.
He sold the early page to Solly Solomou, who went on to develop LADbible into a major media business.
The distinction matters.
Alex helped create the original brand, but he was not responsible for every later stage of its growth.
LADbible expanded into news, entertainment, sport and social content.
Its success reflected the growing importance of social media publishing during the 2010s.
For Alex, it was another example of an idea that started small and became much bigger.
Success Came With Serious Problems
Building a popular platform isn’t always easy.
UNILAD faced strong criticism in 2012 after offensive user-submitted content appeared on the website.
The controversy raised questions about editorial responsibility and the type of material being published.
Alex temporarily shut down the website and apologised.
He later discussed the incident publicly, acknowledging mistakes in allowing content to appear without proper checks.
The experience became an uncomfortable part of his business history.
But another serious problem followed.
He became involved in a long ownership dispute concerning UNILAD.
The disagreement developed into legal proceedings over his interest in the business.
The case continued for years.
Eventually, he secured a legal claim worth approximately £5 million.
Yet that did not mean he simply received £5 million in personal earnings.
UNILAD’s operating company entered administration in October 2018, and the debt situation became complicated.
During this period, Alex also faced serious personal difficulties.
The Difficult Years Behind His Public Success
From the outside, his career looked impressive.
He had created major online brands at a young age.
But his personal experience was different.
The prolonged business dispute caused considerable stress.
In his Guardian interview, Alex spoke about experiencing alcohol dependence and serious mental health problems during this period.
His struggles affected his everyday life.
He eventually sought help, including support through Alcoholics Anonymous.
He has since spoken openly about recovery and what those difficult years taught him.
That part of his story matters.
Business success did not protect him from personal hardship.
He would later use those experiences in his public conversations about mental health.
Understanding His ADHD Diagnosis
Alex received an ADHD diagnosis in adulthood, at age 34.
For years, he had experienced anxiety, impulsive behaviour and difficulty managing certain everyday situations.
He often struggled to understand why.
The diagnosis gave him a different way to look at those experiences.
He began recognising patterns in his past.
Some involved intense periods of interest. Others involved emotional difficulties, self-doubt or problems handling routine tasks.
He has also discussed rejection sensitivity and the pressure he sometimes felt to please other people.
Still, ADHD affects people differently.
His personal experiences should not be treated as universal symptoms.
For Alex, learning about the condition became an important personal change.
It also gave him a new professional direction.
Why He Started ADHD Chatter
In 2023, Alex launched ADHD Chatter.
The podcast focuses on conversations about ADHD and related experiences.
Guests include medical professionals, researchers, authors and people who have received ADHD diagnoses.
They discuss real situations.
Some episodes cover relationships. Others examine workplace difficulties, emotional regulation and late diagnosis.
The show also gives guests space to share their personal stories.
Alex often talks about experiences from his own life.
That makes the conversations personal.
According to his official website, the podcast’s social accounts gained more than three million followers across platforms within 18 months.
That figure comes from his own website.
The podcast has become a major part of his professional identity.
His First Book Explained
In January 2025, Alex published Now It All Makes Sense: How an ADHD Diagnosis Brought Clarity to My Life.
The book tells his personal story.
It discusses childhood difficulties, his experience in business, relationships and the years before his diagnosis.
He also writes about how learning about ADHD changed his understanding of himself.
The book gained attention among readers interested in adult ADHD.
His publisher identifies it as a Sunday Times bestseller.
It marked another change in his career.
He was no longer known only for social media companies.
He had become an author sharing his own experiences.
His Guided Journal and Other Writing
Alex followed his first book with Making ADHD Make Sense in August 2025.
This book uses a different format.
It is a guided journal.
Readers can use questions, written exercises and personal reflections to think about their own experiences.
The material draws from Alex’s life and conversations with specialists who have appeared on his podcast.
His official author website also features Why Does Everybody Hate Me?, which discusses rejection sensitivity.
His writing continues to focus on experiences that people with ADHD may recognise.
However, these books are not replacements for professional medical advice.
Speaking About ADHD at Work
Alex also works as a public speaker.
He talks about neurodiversity, entrepreneurship and mental health.
His official website reports more than 200 speaking engagements.
It lists organisations such as the BBC, British Airways, Experian and Formula 1 among those connected with his speaking work.
One subject he often discusses is the workplace.
He has spoken about finding busy offices difficult and feeling more comfortable in quieter working environments.
In an interview published by Reed, he explained how a change in his working conditions helped him concentrate.
He encourages employers to understand that workers may need different environments or arrangements.
His message comes from personal experience.
He is not presenting himself as a medical professional.
Instead, he shares what has helped him and what he has learned from specialists.
His Work Beyond Podcasting
Alex’s professional activities now include publishing, speaking and media appearances.
He has also appeared in business interviews.
In May 2025, he joined the Founder to Founder podcast, associated with Virgin StartUp.
The discussion covered entrepreneurship, mental health and the lessons he had learned from his business career.
His earlier experiences remain relevant.
After all, building successful brands brought difficult decisions.
He knows what public attention feels like.
He has also experienced legal disputes and the personal pressure that can come with running a business.
These subjects frequently appear in his talks.
What Is Known About His Family?
Alex has shared some childhood memories publicly.
His father worked in antiques, and his early business ideas were partly connected with that environment.
But he keeps many family details out of the public conversation.
Reliable sources do not establish the names of his parents or confirm detailed information about his siblings.
His current marital or relationship status is not clearly documented in the sources reviewed.
So those details should not be guessed.
His publicly available interviews mainly focus on his career, childhood experiences and personal wellbeing.
His Wealth and Business Earnings
People often connect Alex with the financial success of UNILAD and LADbible.
But there is a difference between creating a company and owning it years later.
Both brands grew after his original involvement.
The £5 million figure associated with his UNILAD legal claim is not proof of his current personal wealth.
There is no independently verified net-worth figure available in the reliable sources reviewed.
His present professional activities include books, podcasting and public speaking.
Those may provide income, but his actual earnings have not been publicly confirmed.
Where His Career Stands Today
As of October 2026, Alex is publicly known for his work as an author, podcaster and speaker.
His official website continues to feature his books, podcast and speaking services.
He has moved away from the role that first made his name.
Rather than operating viral entertainment pages, he now spends much of his public career discussing ADHD and personal experiences.
His business history still attracts attention.
Yet his more recent work has brought him a different audience.
Many people now recognise him through ADHD Chatter before learning about his connection with UNILAD.
That’s quite a change.
Career Timeline
| Period | Career Development |
|---|---|
| Childhood | Grew up in Eastbourne and tried small business ideas |
| Around 2010 | Studied at Oxford Brookes and began creating social media pages |
| Early 2010s | Created UNILAD and an early LADbible page |
| 2012 | UNILAD faced criticism over offensive published content |
| 2013 onward | Became involved in disputes concerning UNILAD ownership |
| 2018 | UNILAD’s operating company entered administration |
| 2023 | Launched ADHD Chatter |
| Adulthood | Received an ADHD diagnosis aged 34 |
| January 2025 | Published Now It All Makes Sense |
| August 2025 | Published Making ADHD Make Sense |
| 2026 | Continued his work as an author, speaker and podcast host |
Final Thought
Alex Partridge has lived through very different stages of business and public life.
He started young.
His social media ideas became major brands. Then came controversy, legal difficulties and years of personal struggle.
His later ADHD diagnosis helped him understand parts of his past.
Today, he talks about those experiences through books, interviews and his podcast.
His story is not simply about making money or starting companies.
It is also about learning from mistakes and finding a different direction after difficult years.
And his career is still developing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Alex Partridge?
Alex Partridge is a British entrepreneur, author and podcaster. He created the early UNILAD and LADbible brands and hosts ADHD Chatter.
Did he create UNILAD?
Yes. He created UNILAD as an early social media project aimed at young audiences. The business later grew into a major entertainment publisher.
Did he start LADbible?
Yes. He established an early LADbible page and later sold it to Solly Solomou, who developed the brand further.
Which university did he attend?
He attended Oxford Brookes University but left without completing his degree.
When was he diagnosed with ADHD?
He has publicly stated that he received his diagnosis at age 34. Accounts of the precise timing are not fully consistent.
What is his podcast called?
His podcast is called ADHD Chatter. It features discussions about ADHD with specialists and guests sharing lived experiences.
What books has he written?
His published books include Now It All Makes Sense and Making ADHD Make Sense. His official website also features Why Does Everybody Hate Me?.
Is his net worth publicly known?
No. There is no reliable, independently verified figure for his personal net worth.
