Chris Greenhalgh is a British novelist,

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, teacher and poet.

Life

Chris Greenhalgh was born in 1963 and brought up in Manchester. After studying

English Literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

at university, he lived and worked for five years in Italy and Athens. Upon his return to England, he completed his doctoral thesis on the poetry of Frank O'Hara. He has since pursued a twin career as a writer and educator. He has published two novels, three books of poetry and a successful film script, and has taught in Athens and at Sevenoaks School, where he was Academic Deputy Head. More recently he was Principal of Southbank International School, London and is currently Principal and CEO of The British School of Milan (Sir James Henderson).

Works

Novels

Coco and Igor ''Coco and Igor'' is a 2002 novel by Chris Greenhalgh. Set mainly in Paris in 1920, it is based on a possible real-life affair between Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky. Plot summary Stravinsky's ''The Rite of Spring'' has its Paris premiere o ...

'' was first published in the UK in 2002 by Headline Review and has since been translated into a dozen languages, including French, Russian, Polish, Greek, and Chinese. The novel is based on the secret affair between Coco Chanel and

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

in Paris in 1920. Greenhalgh’s second novel, '' Seducing Ingrid Bergman'', is set in Paris and Hollywood, after the end of the Second World War and tells the story of

Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films, television movies, and plays.Obituary ''Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, she is often ...

and war photographer Robert Capa's intense and ultimately tragic relationship.

Film scripts

Greenhalgh has written a screenplay adapting his novel ''Coco and Igor''. The film '' Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky'', directed by Jan Kounen and starring

Anna Mouglalis Anna Mouglalis ( el, Άννα Μουγλάλη; born 26 April 1978) is a French actress and model. She is known for being a house ambassador for Chanel since 2002, and for portraying the fashion designer Coco Chanel in the 2009 film ''Coco Chane ...

and

Mads Mikkelsen Mads Dittmann Mikkelsen, (; born 22 November 1965) is a Danish actor. Originally a gymnast and dancer, he rose to fame in Denmark as an actor for his roles such as Tonny in the first two films of the ''Pusher'' film trilogy (1996, 2004), Det ...

held the prestigious closing slot at the

2009 Cannes Film Festival The 62nd Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 May to 24 May 2009. French actress Isabelle Huppert was the President of the Jury. Twenty films from thirteen countries were selected to compete for the Palme d'Or. The awards were announced on 23 M ...

selected ''Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky'' to be shown in its prestigious closing slot, on 24 May 2009. His second novel was optioned in 2014 by YRF and is currently scheduled to be directed by James Mangold(Walk the Line, Wolverine, Girl Interrupted...)

Poetry

Greenhalgh has published three volumes of poetry, all with

Bloodaxe Books Bloodaxe Books is a British publishing house specializing in poetry. History Bloodaxe Books was founded in 1978 in Newcastle upon Tyne by Neil Astley, who is still editor and managing director. Bloodaxe moved its editorial office to Northumbe ...

. *''Stealing the Mona Lisa'' (1994) *''Of Love, Death and the Sea-Squirt'' (2000) *''The Invention of Zero'' (2007)

Prizes and awards

Eric Gregory Award The Eric Gregory Award is a literary award given annually by the Society of Authors for a collection by British poets under the age of 30. The award was founded in 1960 by Dr. Eric Gregory to support and encourage young poets. In 2021, the seven ...

for poetry from the Society of Authors (1992)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greenhalgh, Chris Living people Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century English novelists English screenwriters English male screenwriters English male poets 1963 births English male novelists 21st-century British screenwriters 21st-century English male writers