Julian Barritt
Editor
Julian was born in Madron, near Penzance in West Cornwall and despite spending much of his early life in Brighton, his lasting love for Cornwall never waned and he visited at every opportunity. He came to Christ in his teens, attending a lively Anglican church with a blossoming youth fellowship. At Sunderland University, where he gained a BA in Communication Studies, he was the President of the Students’ Union. His career began in Customs & Excise in Newhaven. He started to write articles which were published in magazines and in 1990 decided to set up his own subscription-based, small press magazine, initially called Christian Writers’ Forum (CWF) which included a small writing group meeting in Brighton. It was here that he met Gillian and they were married in 1991. Julian was CWF’s editor and its name was changed a few years later to Areopagus. His career took him to Winchester and Plymouth, followed by a role with Border Force. He has had three children’s books published and after retirement he became a kiln technician in Gillian’s ceramic studio, eagerly creating pots at his wheel in Torpoint. In 2024 he became a Licensed Lay Reader. His intention is for Areopagus to always be a vibrant and fresh voice for Christian writers and it is one of a kind [just like Julian! – Deputy Editor].
Gillian Barritt
Deputy Editor and Treasurer
Gillian was born in Redruth in West Cornwall. Her parents were with the RAF and after living in different places they were finally able to settle in St Ives where Gillian was to spend her formative years. Gillian’s chosen career in optics brought her to Brighton where she became a committed Christian in 1989. It was here that she also met Julian, having responded to his advertisement for Christian writers in a local magazine. They soon discovered they had much in common including Cornwall (and their love for it) and they were married in 1991. She continued working as a dispensing optician but after moving to Torpoint she became interested in ceramics. She studied at Plymouth College of Art and Design and with her new qualifications she and Julian decided to build their own studio in their garden, purchasing a kiln to realise their dream of hand building ceramics. After joining their local Anglican church they studied to become Licensed Lay Readers and were formally licensed at Truro Cathedral in 2024. Since 2025 Gillian has become more involved in the editorship of Areopagus.
Jean and Patrick Armin
Design Editors, Printing Services and Proof Reading
Having been a subscriber and contributor since the early days of Areopagus, somewhere along the line Jean also became involved with the proof-reading, later bringing in Patrick for design and set-up. She has always been a writer of short stories for competitions, articles for church magazines, and more latterly, resource materials for church worship. Still being involved in administrative and bookkeeping roles (despite trying to retire), she values her fortnightly Writers’ Group which sets bizarre tasks to exercise the creative brain cells. Patrick’s practical skills come into their own with the layout and printing side of the production process.
Susan Wilson
Membership Secretary and
Website Content Editor
Susan spent her entire working career in the City of London. She began writing poetry shortly after the death of her mum at a local hospice in 2017 where she is now an admin volunteer. Her faith-based poetry has been published by Areopagus and Amethyst Review whilst her non-faith poetry has been published by Lucy Writers, Snakeskin, Runcible Spoon, Dreich, Streetcake, Rue Scribe, Lothlorien, The Candyman’s Trumpet, 100subtexts and Everscribe. Her debut chapbook “I Couldn’t Write to Save Her Life”, featuring faith and non-faith pieces, was published in 2021 by Dreich. More recently her artwork has been published by Inspirational Art Magazine. She joined as a subscriber in 2021, becoming Membership Secretary in 2023 and Website Content Editor in 2026.