Tim Firth

Tim Firth began writing when he was eighteen on an Arvon Foundation course in Yorkshire, run by Willy Russell and Danny Hiller. After studying at Cambridge for three years, his first professional commissions were "Heartlands" for Chichester, directed by Sam Mendes, and "A Man of Letters" for the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough. Tim's subsequent work included "Neville's Island" (1993) and "The End of the Food Chain" (1994), both for the Stephen Joseph Theatre. The Nottingham Playhouse production of "Neville's Island" went on to the Apollo Theatre in London's West End where it was nominated for an Evening Standard award and four Laurence Olivier awards. It has since been produced regularly in the UK and all over the world, and translated into several languages. The television film of Neville's Island (1998) (directed by Terry Johnson and starring Timothy Spall and Martin Clunes) was screened on ITV. Tim's first play for television was the BBC film, Money for Nothing (1993). It was shot in New York and Tim's hometown, Frodsham, and, in 1994, won the Writer's Guild Award for best film. His first series, All Quiet on the Preston Front (1994), ran for three series between 1994-7, winning the British Comedy Awards Best Comedy Drama, the Royal Television Society Best Drama, the San Francisco Television Festival, the Writer's Guild Best Drama and a BAFTA nomination. His first series for children, Roger and the Rottentrolls (1996), was on for four series, winning the BAFTA for best children's entertainment. Series 3 was nominated for a BAFTA and Series 4 was nominated for two BAFTAs. His feature film, Calendar Girls (2003), starring Helen Mirren and Julie Walters, was filmed in the summer of 2002 for Buena Vista, followed in the autumn by his second, Blackball (2003), for Icon, starring Paul Kaye, James Cromwell and Vince Vaughn. Cruise of the Gods (2002), his latest comedy film for BBC2, starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, was broadcast on Christmas 2002. His most recent stage work includes the musical, "Our House", the book by Tim, music and lyrics by Madness featuring the music of Madness, which opened at the Cambridge Theatre in October 2002 and received three Laurence Olivier nominations including Best Musical. Tim lives and works in North Cheshire with his wife, Katy, and children Jack, Joe and Georgia.