David Alan Nicholls (born 30 November 1966
[''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England and Wales, 1837–2006''. 6B. p. 1327.]) is a British novelist and screenwriter. Initially an actor after graduating college, he became a screenwriter, notably creating ''Rescue Me'' and adaptations of novels, plays, and memoirs. He is the author of six novels.
Early life and education
Nicholls is the middle of three siblings. He attended
Barton Peveril College
Barton Peveril Sixth Form College is an Ofsted 'Outstanding' sixth form college located in Eastleigh, Hampshire, UK with approximately 5,000 students, aged 16–18. It is part of the Wessex Group of Sixth Form Colleges.
History
Originally Bart ...
at
Eastleigh
Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the United Kingdom 2011 census, 2011 census.
The town ...
,
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
, taking A-levels in Drama, English Literature, Physics and Biology. He took part in college drama productions, playing a wide range of roles.
In 1988, he received a BA in
drama
Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
and
English from the
University of Bristol
The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...
. Later, he trained as an actor at the
American Musical and Dramatic Academy
The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) is a private conservatory for the performing arts in New York City and Los Angeles, California. The conservatory offers master's degrees, bachelor's degrees, associate degrees, and certificates ...
in New York.
First career
Throughout his 20s, he worked as an actor, using the stage name David Holdaway. He played small roles at various theatres, including the
West Yorkshire Playhouse
Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1990 in the Quarry Hill area of the city as the West Yorkshire Playhouse, successor to the original Leeds Playhouse, and was rebranded in June 2018 ...
and, for a three-year period, at the
Royal National Theatre
The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...
. He struggled as an actor and has said "I’d committed myself to a profession for which I lacked not just talent and charisma, but the most basic of skills. Moving, standing still – things like that." Nicholls says that a turning point in his career came when a friend gave him a copy of
P. J. Kavanagh’s memoir ''
The Perfect Stranger,'' which tells the author's own tale of maturation, finding love, and discovering his path in life.
Writing career
Novels
Nicholls's third novel, ''
One Day'' (2009), became an international bestseller and has sold over six million copies worldwide, being translated into 40 languages. The novel, which follows the lives of two characters on the same day each year, received critical acclaim. A
film adaptation under the same name was released in 2011, starring
Anne Hathaway
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. List of awards and nominations received by Anne Hathaway, Her accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime ...
. In 2024, a
14-part Netflix adaptation premiered, reaching the top 10 in 89 countries and garnering widespread acclaim.
Nicholl's six novels are about love and the experience of love in various life stages – with protagonists ranging from Douglas (58) at the end of his fourth novel ''
Us'' (2014), to Charlie (16) at the start of his fifth novel ''
Sweet Sorrow'' (2019), and Marnie (38) and Michael (42) in ''
You Are Here'' (2024).
Screenwriting
Nicholls co-wrote the adapted screenplay of ''
Simpatico'' and contributed four scripts to the
third series
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system
Places
* 3rd Street (dis ...
of ''
Cold Feet
''Cold Feet'' is a British comedy-drama television series produced by Granada Television for the ITV (TV network), ITV network. The series was created and principally written by Mike Bullen as a follow-up to his 1997 Comedy Premieres, Comedy ...
'' (both 2000).
For the latter, he was nominated for a
British Academy Television Craft Award for Best New Writer (Fiction). He created the
Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire on weekdays only, as ABC Weekend TV, ...
pilot and miniseries I Saw You (2000, 2002) and the
Tiger Aspect six-part series ''
Rescue Me'' (2002). ''Rescue Me'' lasted for only one series before being cancelled. Nicholls had written four episodes for the second series before being told of the cancellation. His anger over this led to him taking a break from screenwriting to concentrate on writing ''
Starter for Ten''. When he returned to screenwriting, he adapted ''
Much Ado About Nothing
''Much Ado About Nothing'' is a Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare thought to have been written in 1598 and 1599.See textual notes to ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in ''The Norton Shakespeare'' (W. W. Norton & Company, 1997 ) p. ...
'' into a one-hour segment of the BBC's 2005 ''
ShakespeaRe-Told'' season. For this, he was nominated for the
British Academy Television Award for Best Single Drama
The British Academy Television Award for Best Single Drama is one of the major categories of the British Academy Television Awards (BAFTAs), the primary awards ceremony of the British television industry. According to the BAFTA website, the categor ...
. He wrote a screen adaptation of his novel, ''One Day'', which was made into a
film
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
starring
Anne Hathaway
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. List of awards and nominations received by Anne Hathaway, Her accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime ...
and
Jim Sturgess
James Anthony Sturgess''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 16 May 1978) is an English actor and singer-songwriter. His first major role was as Jude in the musical romance drama film ''Acros ...
. In 2005, he wrote ''Aftersun'' for the
Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
*Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...
's 24-Hour Play festival. The play, starring
James Nesbitt
William James Nesbitt (born 15 January 1965) is an actor from Northern Ireland. From 1987, Nesbitt spent seven years performing in plays that varied from the musical '' Up on the Roof'' (1987, 1989) to the political drama ''Paddywack'' (1994). ...
,
Saffron Burrows
Saffron Burrows (born 22 October 1972) is a British and American actress who has appeared in films such as '' Circle of Friends,'' '' Wing Commander,'' '' Deep Blue Sea,'' '' Gangster No. 1,'' '' Enigma,'' ''Troy,'' '' Reign Over Me'', and '' Th ...
,
Catherine Tate
Catherine Tate (born Catherine Jane Ford, 5 December 1969) is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC Two, BBC sketch comedy series ''The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2007), as well as bein ...
and
Gael García Bernal
Gael García Bernal (; born 30 November 1978) is a Mexican actor and filmmaker. He is known for his performances in the films ''Amores perros'' (2000), ''Y tu mamá también'' (2001), ''Bad Education (2004 film), Bad Education'' (2004), ''The Mot ...
was just 10 minutes long. Nicholls developed ''Aftersun'' into a one-off comedy for BBC One. It starred
Peter Capaldi
Peter Dougan Capaldi (; born 14 April 1958) is a Scottish actor, director, singer and guitarist. He portrayed the Twelfth Doctor, twelfth incarnation of the Doctor in the science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' (2013–2017) and Malcolm Tucker i ...
and
Sarah Parish
Sarah Parish (born 7 June 1968) is an English actress. She is known for her work on television series including '' The Pillars of the Earth'', '' Peak Practice'', '' Hearts and Bones'', ''Cutting It'', ''Doctor Who'', '' Mistresses'', ''Merlin'' ...
and was broadcast in 2006.
In 2006, his film adaptation ''
Starter for 10'' was released in cinemas. The following year, he wrote ''
And When Did You Last See Your Father?'', an adaptation of the memoir by
Blake Morrison
Philip Blake Morrison (born 8 October 1950) is an English poet and author who has published in a wide range of fiction and non-fiction genres. His greatest success came with the publication of his memoirs ''And When Did You Last See Your Father?' ...
. His adaptation of ''
Tess of the D'Urbervilles
''Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman'' is the twelfth published novel by English author Thomas Hardy. It initially appeared in a Book censorship, censored and Serialized novel, serialised version, published by the British illustrated newsp ...
'' for the BBC aired in 2008. He has also adapted ''
Great Expectations
''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by English author Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. The novel is a bildungsroman and depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens' second novel, after ''Dav ...
''; the screenplay has been listed on the 2009 Brit List, an annual industry poll of the best unmade scripts outside the United States. He wrote ''
The 7.39'', which was broadcast on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
in January 2014.
In 2015, he wrote the screenplay for ''
Far from the Madding Crowd'', an adaptation of
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
's 1874 novel
of the same name, for
BBC Films
BBC Film (formerly BBC Films) is the feature film-making arm of the BBC. It was founded on 18 June 1990, and has produced or co-produced some of the most successful British films of recent years, including ''Truly, Madly, Deeply (film), Truly, ...
. It is the fourth film adaptation of the novel.
Nicholls worked on the initial script for ''
Bridget Jones's Baby'' (2016) but the script was re-written and he was not credited in the film. He wrote ''
Patrick Melrose'' (2018), a five-part television series based on
Edward St Aubyn
Edward St Aubyn (born 1960) is an English author and journalist. He is the author of ten novels, including notably the semi-autobiographical ''Patrick Melrose'' novels. In 2006, ''Mother's Milk'' was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
Early life ...
's novels, and received a nomination for the
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or Dramatic Special for his work on the show.
Personal life
Nicholls lives in
Highbury
Highbury is an area of North London, England, in the London Borough of Islington.
Highbury Manor
Highbury was once owned by Ranulf, brother of Ilger, and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads.
The manor hou ...
in
north London
North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...
, with his partner of more than 25 years, Hannah Weaver, a
script editor
A script editor is a member of the production team of scripted television and radio programs, usually dramas and comedies. The script editor has many responsibilities including finding new script writers, developing storyline and series ideas wit ...
.
In August 2024, Nicholls was featured on the
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
's
Desert Island Discs
''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942.
Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...
.
Awards and honours
Literary awards
* 2010
Galaxy Book of the Year Award, winner for ''One Day''
*2014
Specsavers National Book Awards
The British Book Awards or Nibbies are literary awards for the best UK writers and their works, administered by ''The Bookseller''. The awards have had several previous names, owners and sponsors since being launched in 1990, including the Na ...
for UK Author of the Year, winner for ''
Us''
* 2014
Man Booker Prize
The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...
, longlisted for ''
Us''
* 2024
Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize
The Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize is the United Kingdom's first literary award for comic literature. Established in 2000 and named in honour of P. G. Wodehouse, past winners include Paul Torday in 2007 with '' Salmon Fishing in the Yemen ...
, shortlisted for ''
You Are Here''
Honours
*2015 honorary DLitt from the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...
*2016 Honorary DLitt from the
University of Bristol
The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...
Novels
*''
Starter for Ten'' (2003)
*''
The Understudy'' (2005)
*''
One Day'' (2009)
*''
Us'' (2014)
*''
Sweet Sorrow'' (2019)
*''
You Are Here'' (2024)
References
Further reading
* Nicholls, David (19 March 2005).
The invisible man. ''The Guardian''.
* Nicholls, David (31 October 2006).
I was a bit of a prat. ''The Guardian''.
External links
Official websiteDavid Nichollsat Curtis Brown Literary and Talent Agency
* in the ''
Oxonian Review''
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholls, David
1966 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Bristol
Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
21st-century English novelists
English screenwriters
English male screenwriters
English television writers
English male novelists
British male television writers
21st-century British screenwriters
21st-century English male writers
People from Eastleigh
People associated with the University of Edinburgh
British Book Award winners