Jason Arday: Professor in plagiarism row cancels book tour events

A professor who has resigned following a high-profile plagiarism row has cancelled events to promote his upcoming book.

Jason Arday, who became Cambridge's youngest black professor in 2023, has called off a bookshop event in Edinburgh and a conference speech.

His memoir, Great And Unfortunate Things, is due to be published on 27 August - with the publisher facing calls to postpone its release.

Prof Arday's resignation on Wednesday followed a series of reports alleging he plagiarised his PhD thesis, which was completed at the University of Liverpool.

Further questions have been asked about the truth of other claims he made, including that he ran 600 miles in six days and had raised £5.5m for charity.

He later told The Guardian that the money was raised with the help of others over 20 years, but they could not be named because of non-disclosure agreements.

Cambridge University has now launched an investigation into Prof Arday's "academic qualifications and honorary appointments".

In a letter addressed to his colleagues announcing his resignation, Prof Arday wrote: "While criticism is an inevitable part of academic life, what I have experienced has gone far beyond scholarly disagreement.

"The relentless accusations, speculation and public commentary have taken a profound toll on me and on those I love."

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Prof Arday added that the "only way to bring this chapter to an end is to step away" - but he stressed the decision should not be "mistaken for an acceptance of the narratives that have surrounded me".

"It is simply the decision of someone who has reached the limits of what any person should reasonably be expected to endure," he wrote.

Last week, Green Party leader Zack Polanski defended Prof Arday, and said "people of colour … can sometimes be held by higher standards" in society.

Speaking on LBC, Mr Polanski sought to defend his decision to sign a letter that criticised the "sustained and malicious attacks" on the academic's integrity.

He said: "I think the whole affair sounds pretty sad.

"I think it would be good, actually, if the (university) investigation still was carried out, because I think it would be good to know the truth.

"And ultimately, I think these things should be about fair process and transparency rather than trial by media."

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