Imran Mahmood (born 1969) is a British novelist and

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

. His first novel ''You Don't Know Me'' (2017), which was shortlisted for the Glass Bell Award in 2018, was dramatised by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

in 2021.

Biography

Mahmood, whose parents are first-generation immigrants from Pakistan, was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

in 1969. Growing up in Liverpool, he attended

comprehensive schools A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

. After earning his undergraduate degree in 1990 at

Kingston University Kingston University London is a Public university, public research university located within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South London, South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, he studied for the bar at the

Inns of Court The Inns of Court in London are the professional associations for barristers in England and Wales. There are four Inns of Court: Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple. All barristers must belong to one of them. They have s ...

. he is a

, with chambers in

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

, specialising in

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

and in

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

. He and his wife live in South East London.

Literary career

In Mahmood's first novel, ''You Don't Know Me'', a young man on trial for murder urgently tells his story to a jury. According to Mahmood, the novel was inspired by young men he defended in London courts. The book's 2017 publication was well received. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' listed it as one of the best crime novels of 2017, calling it "an original take on a courtroom drama that puts the reader in the position of the jury... a gripping, vivid depiction of London’s gang culture with an authentic feel."

Simon Mayo Simon Andrew Hicks Mayo (born 21 September 1958) is an English radio presenter and author who worked for BBC Radio from 1982 until 2022. Mayo has presented across three BBC stations for extended periods. From 1986 to 2001 he worked for Radio ...

selected it as a

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

Book Club Choice in 2017. In 2018, it was shortlisted for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award, which according to ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'' "is the only award to reward storytelling in all genres, from romance and crime to historical and speculative." It was also longlisted for the 2018 best

crime novel Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a profession ...

of the year, both by the

Crime Writers' Association The Crime Writers' Association (CWA) is a specialist authors' organisation in the United Kingdom, most notable for its "Dagger" awards for the best crime writing of the year, and the Diamond Dagger awarded to an author for lifetime achievement. ...

(for the

CWA Gold Dagger The CWA Gold Dagger is an award given annually by the Crime Writers' Association of the United Kingdom since 1960 for the best crime novel of the year. From 1955 to 1959, the organization named their top honor as the Crossed Red Herring Award. ...

award) and by the

Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award The Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award is one of the UK's top crime-fiction awards, sponsored by Theakston's Old Peculier. It is awarded annually at Harrogate Crime Writing Festival in the UK, held every July, as part of the H ...

(awarded annually at the

Harrogate International Festivals Harrogate International Festivals (HIF) is a Registered Charity, registered charity and one of the UK's longest running arts festivals, having been established in 1966. It is based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. Festivals include the Harrogate Mu ...

). In 2020, the

announced it would be adapting the book into a four-part dramatisation, to be directed by

Sarmad Masud Sarmad Masud, also known as Sam Masud, is a British filmmaker whose 2017 movie '' My Pure Land'' was the first Urdu language film nominated by the UK for a Foreign Language Oscar award. Personal life Sarmad Masud was born in Bradford to immigrant ...

. The four-part series began airing in December 2021, with lead roles played by

Samuel Adewunmi Samuel Adewunmi (born 1994) is a British actor. He won British Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Performance, Most Promising Newcomer at the British Independent Film Awards 2019, British Independent Film Awards as well as receiving a BIFA Aw ...

and

Bukky Bakray Bukky Bakray (born 2002) is a British actress and writer. She is known for her debut role in the film ''Rocks'' (2019). At 18, she became the youngest BAFTA Rising Star Award recipient as well as one of the youngest Best Actress in a Leading Role ...

. Mahmood's second book, ''I Know What I Saw'', is a thriller about a murder in the affluent London district of

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

. It was published by Raven Books, the new crime imprint of

Bloomsbury Publishing Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. Bloomsbury's head office is located on Bedford Square in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a US publishing office located in ...

. Its narrator, formerly a wealthy banker, meets scepticism when police cannot confirm his account of witnessing murder. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' recommended it as one of their "Best Thrillers for 2021." The ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'' also praised the book, saying "it affirms his talent." Mahmood's third book, ''All I Said Was True'', was published in 2022.

Bibliography

*''You Don't Know Me'' 2017 (

Penguin Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...

) - Shortlisted for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award for storytelling. *''I Know What I Saw'' 2021 ( Raven Books (Bloomsbury))

References

External links

Author website

Official trailer of BBC miniseries ''You Don't Know Me''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahmood, Imran Living people 1969 births Alumni of Kingston University British Asian writers British writers of Pakistani descent English barristers English crime fiction writers English people of Pakistani descent Members of the Middle Temple Writers from Liverpool