Like his siblings, he went to Coombs Middle School and to university, where Tom was studying at Sheffield. Tom's middle name reflects his father's love of Liverpool football club. In later years, Peel's own shows occasionally featured one of 'Tom's Tips', brought to his attention by the young music fan. Tom has also followed in his father's footsteps by branching out into journalism, writing a column for The Times and a blog for the magazine New Statesman. In one blog entry he expressed his enthusiasm for an artist who was one of his father's favourites, John Fahey.