The 82-year-old was given the jab at Oxford University Hospital, NHS England said.
Mr Pinker, who describes himself as Oxford born and bred, said in a statement: “I am so pleased to be getting the Covid vaccine today and really proud that it is one that was invented in Oxford.
“The nurses, doctors and staff today have all been brilliant and I can now really look forward to celebrating my 48th wedding anniversary with my wife Shirley later this year.”
Sam Foster, Chief Nursing Officer at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, who administered the vaccine to Mr Pinker, said: “It was a real privilege to be able to deliver the first Oxford vaccine at the Churchill Hospital here in Oxford, just a few hundred metres from where it was developed.
“We look forward to vaccinating many more patients and health and care staff with the Oxford vaccine in the coming weeks which will make a huge difference to people living in the communities we serve and the staff who care for them in our hospitals.”
Just over half a million doses of the newly approved vaccine are available from today.
Jabs will be delivered at 730 vaccination site across the UK.
And further sites are opening this week to take the total to more than 1,000, according to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
The vaccine will be administered at a small number of hospitals in England for the first few days, including at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust where it was developed.
Five other hospital trusts – two in London, and others in Sussex, Lancashire and Warwickshire – will also start delivering the vaccine on Monday.
The bulk of supplies will then be sent to hundreds of GP-led services and care homes later in the week for wider rollout, according to DHSC.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock hailed the rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.
He tweeted: “Delighted that today we roll out the UniofOxford / AstraZeneca vaccine across the whole UK.
“It’s a vital step in our fight against this pandemic. This is a national mission. Thank you to everyone involved.”
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