Matt Whyman is a British novelist and non-fiction writer, formerly known for his work as an advice columnist for numerous teenage magazines.
Biography
Born in 1969, Matt Whyman grew up in
Berkhamsted
Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the River Bulbourne, Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a Civil parishes in England, civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which ...
,
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
, and has an MA from the
UEA Creative Writing course
The University of East Anglia's Creative Writing Course was founded by Sir Malcolm Bradbury and Sir Angus Wilson in 1970. The M.A. has been regarded among the most prestigious in the United Kingdom.
The course allows specialisation in the followi ...
(1992) taught by
Sir Malcolm Bradbury
Sir Malcolm Stanley Bradbury, (7 September 1932 – 27 November 2000) was an English author and academic.
Life
Bradbury was born in Sheffield, the son of a railwayman. His family moved to London in 1935, but returned to Sheffield in 1941 wit ...
and
Rose Tremain
Dame Rose Tremain (born 2 August 1943) is an English novelist, short story writer, and former Chancellor of the University of East Anglia.
Life
Rose Tremain was born Rosemary Jane Thomson on 2 August 1943 in London to Viola Mabel Thomson and ...
. He has written widely for all ages across a range of subjects in fiction and non-fiction, notably ''
Boy Kills Man'' (2004), a critically acclaimed story of Colombian child assassins published in translation around the world. From January 2023 to July 2024, Whyman was embedded with the
Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team to write
The Sunday Times Bestseller, ''Inside Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane'' (2024)
In 1995, Whyman became the first male advice columnist for 19 magazine. He went on to hold a 10-year residency as
AOL
AOL (formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City, and a brand marketed by Yahoo! Inc.
The service traces its history to an online ...
UK's online agony uncle, and for 18 years at
Bliss Magazine from 1996 until its closure in 2014. He has created many national health awareness campaigns for
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
,
CLIC Sargent
Young Lives vs Cancer, the operating name for "CLIC Sargent", is a charity in the United Kingdom formed in 2005. Young Lives vs Cancer is the 12th largest cancer charity in the UK with a focus on children, young people and their families. Its c ...
,
Macmillan and
Brook Advisory, written widely on teenage issues for the national press, and often appeared on radio and television in this role. In 1997, Whyman co-presented a series of ITV's cult Saturday morning sex and relationships show, ''Love Bites'', and from 2011-2013 served as the resident agony uncle on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
's live advice show,
The Surgery
''The Surgery'' was a British radio show that aired on BBC Radio 1 weekly from 1999 to 2017.
It was most recently hosted by Katie Thistleton and Doctor Radha Modgil, prior to its merger in November 2017 with a new show entitled '' Radio 1's ...
.
As well as teaching creative writing across the UK, and for the
British Council
The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lang ...
in Russia,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, Africa and the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
, Whyman is an established ghostwriter and collaborative author. In the latter role, he has worked on books with
Billy Connolly
Sir William Connolly (born 24 November 1942) is a Scottish actor, musician, television presenter, artist and retired stand-up comedian. He is sometimes known by the Scots nickname the Big Yin ("the Big One"). Known for his idiosyncratic and of ...
(''Tracks Across America'', 2016),
Charles Eugster (''Age is Just a Number'' 2017),
Matthew Syed
Matthew Philip Syed (born 2 November 1970) is an English journalist, author, broadcaster and former table tennis player. He competed as an English table tennis international, and was the English number one for many years.
Syed is a three-time ...
(''You are Awesome'', 2018) and
Gareth Southgate
Sir Gareth Southgate (born 3 September 1970) is an English professional Association football, football manager and player, who played as a Defender (association football), defender and midfielder.
A Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace Crystal ...
(''Anything is Possible'', 2020) among others. In 2015, he wrote the graphic novel ''Username: Evie'', with the story provided by
Joe Sugg
Joseph Graham Sugg (born 8 September 1991) is an English YouTuber. In 2012, he began posting videos on the YouTube channel ThatcherJoe, currently at 7.27 million subscribers and 1.33 billion overall channel views. In 2018, he was a finalist on t ...
, who was credited as the lead author of the work, and with the art provided by Amrit Birdi, as well as two further titles, ''Username: Regenerated'' (2016) and ''Username: Uprising'' (2017)''.'' Whyman is also the author of ''The Nice & Accurate Good Omens TV Companion'' (2019) to accompany the series,
Good Omens
''Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch'' is a 1990 novel written by the English authors Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.
The novel is a comedy about the birth of the son of Satan and the coming of the End Times. ...
, based upon the novel by
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (; born Neil Richard Gaiman; 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, audio theatre, and screenplays. His works include the comic series ''The Sandman (comic book), The Sandma ...
and
Terry Pratchett
Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English author, humorist, and Satire, satirist, best known for the ''Discworld'' series of 41 comic fantasy novels published between 1983 and 2015, and for the Apocalyp ...
, and
Our Planet
''Our Planet'' is a British nature documentary series made for Netflix. The series is narrated by David Attenborough and produced by Silverback Films, led by Alastair Fothergill and Keith Scholey, who also created BBC documentary series ''Planet ...
, based on the
Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
series, with a foreword by
Sir David Attenborough
Sir David Frederick Attenborough (; born 8 May 1926) is an English broadcaster, biologist, natural historian and writer. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Studios Natural History Unit, the nine nature d ...
.
Matt Whyman lives in West Sussex. He is married with four children.
Books
Novels
*''Man or Mouse'' (2000),
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
*''Columbia Road'' (2002)
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
*''Superhuman'' (2003),
*''
Boy Kills Man'' (2004),
*''The Wild'' (2005),
*''So Below'' (2005),
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
(republished as ''Street Runners'' in 2008)
*''Inside the Cage'' (2007),
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
/
Atheneum Books
Atheneum Books was a New York City publishing house established in 1959 by Alfred A. Knopf, Jr., Simon Michael Bessie and Hiram Haydn. Simon & Schuster has owned Atheneum properties since it acquired Macmillan in 1994, and it created Atheneum ...
(as ''Icecore'')
*''Goldstrike'' (2009),
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
&
Atheneum Books
Atheneum Books was a New York City publishing house established in 1959 by Alfred A. Knopf, Jr., Simon Michael Bessie and Hiram Haydn. Simon & Schuster has owned Atheneum properties since it acquired Macmillan in 1994, and it created Atheneum ...
*''Lazlo Strangolov's Feather & Bone'' (2009)
Walker Books
Walker Books is a British publisher of children's books, founded in 1978 by Sebastian Walker, Amelia Edwards, and Wendy Boase.
In 1991, the success of Walker Books' ''Where's Wally?'' series enabled the company to expand into the American ma ...
*''Lazlo Strangolov's Tooth & Claw'' (2011)
Walker Books
Walker Books is a British publisher of children's books, founded in 1978 by Sebastian Walker, Amelia Edwards, and Wendy Boase.
In 1991, the success of Walker Books' ''Where's Wally?'' series enabled the company to expand into the American ma ...
*''Battle Champions: Academy Attack'' (2013)
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
(co-written as Jack Carson)
*''Battle Champions: Canyon Clash'' (2013)
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
(co-written as Jack Carson)
*''Battle Champions: Swampland Slam'' (2013)
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
co-written as Jack Carson)
*''Battle Champions: Terminal Takedown'' (2013)
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
(co-written as Jack Carson)
*''The Savages (2013)''
Hot Key Books
Bonnier AB (), also the Bonnier Group, is a privately held Swedish media group of 175 companies operating in 15 countries. It is controlled by the Bonnier family.
Background
The company was founded in 1804 by Gerhard Bonnier in Copenhagen, Denm ...
*''American Savage'' (2014)
Hot Key Books
Bonnier AB (), also the Bonnier Group, is a privately held Swedish media group of 175 companies operating in 15 countries. It is controlled by the Bonnier family.
Background
The company was founded in 1804 by Gerhard Bonnier in Copenhagen, Denm ...
*''
Boy Kills Man'' Tenth Anniversary Edition (2014)
Hot Key Books
Bonnier AB (), also the Bonnier Group, is a privately held Swedish media group of 175 companies operating in 15 countries. It is controlled by the Bonnier family.
Background
The company was founded in 1804 by Gerhard Bonnier in Copenhagen, Denm ...
*''Bad Apple'' (2016)
Hot Key Books
Bonnier AB (), also the Bonnier Group, is a privately held Swedish media group of 175 companies operating in 15 countries. It is controlled by the Bonnier family.
Background
The company was founded in 1804 by Gerhard Bonnier in Copenhagen, Denm ...
Non-fiction
*''Wise Guides: Smoking'' (2000),
*''Wise Guides: Drinking'' (2002),
*''XY: A Toolkit for Life'' (2002),
(republished as ''Unzipped'' in 2007)
*''XY100: 100 strategies for life'' (2004),
*''Wise Guides: Family Break Up'' (2005),
*''Oink / Pig in the Middle'' (2011)
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
*''Walking With Sausage Dogs (''2012)
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
*''The Unexpected Genius of Pigs'' (2018)
HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...
*''The Nice & Accurate Good Omens TV Companion'' (2019)
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
*''Our Planet'' (2019)
HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...
.
*''Be More Sausage'' (2020)
HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...
*''Failure is an Option'' (2022)
Vertebrate Publishing
*''Inside Mercedes F1'' (2024)
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 ...
Short stories
* ''Visionary'' (1992) Minerva (published in New Writing 2 edited by
Malcolm Bradbury
Sir Malcolm Stanley Bradbury, (7 September 1932 – 27 November 2000) was an English author and academic.
Life
Bradbury was born in Sheffield, the son of a railwayman. His family moved to London in 1935, but returned to Sheffield in 1941 wit ...
&
Andrew Motion
Sir Andrew Peter Motion (born 26 October 1952) is an English poet, novelist, and biographer, who was Poet Laureate from 1999 to 2009. During the period of his laureateship, Motion founded the Poetry Archive, an online resource of poems and a ...
* ''crusoe.com'' (2000)
Hodder Headline
Headline Publishing Group is a British publishing brand and former company. It was founded in 1986 by Tim Hely Hutchinson. In 1993, Headline bought Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hac ...
(published in the New English Library of Internet Short Stories edited by
Maxim Jakubowski
Maxim Jakubowski (born 1944) is an English writer of crime fiction, erotica, and science fiction, and also a rock music critic.
Jakubowski was born in 1944 in England to Russian-British and Polish parents, but raised in France. Jakubowski has a ...
* ''Enfemme'' (2001)
HarperCollins
HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...
(published in Girls' Night Out/Boys' Night In edited by Jessica Adams, Chris Manby &
Fiona Walker
Fiona Walker (born 24 May 1944) is an English actress, known for numerous theatre and television roles between the 1960s and 1990s.
An early leading role was as Sue Bridehead in a BBC television production of ''Jude the Obscure'' (1971). She ma ...
* ''Eleven Pipers Piping'' (2006)
Virago
A virago is a woman who demonstrates abundant masculine virtues. The word comes from the Latin word ''virāgō'' (genitive virāginis) meaning "vigorous maiden" from ''vir'' meaning "man" or "man-like" (cf. virile and virtue) to which the suffi ...
(published in Twelve Days edited by
Shelley Silas
* ''Eclipsed'' (2010)
Walker Books
Walker Books is a British publisher of children's books, founded in 1978 by Sebastian Walker, Amelia Edwards, and Wendy Boase.
In 1991, the success of Walker Books' ''Where's Wally?'' series enabled the company to expand into the American ma ...
(published in The Truth is Dead edited by
Marcus Sedgwick
* ''Uplifted'' (2013)
Hot Key Books
Bonnier AB (), also the Bonnier Group, is a privately held Swedish media group of 175 companies operating in 15 countries. It is controlled by the Bonnier family.
Background
The company was founded in 1804 by Gerhard Bonnier in Copenhagen, Denm ...
(published in The Booby Trap edited by
Dawn O'Porter
Dawn O'Porter (born Dawn Porter; 23 January 1979) is a Scottish writer, director, and television presenter.
Early life
Dawn O'Porter was born in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, Alexandria, Scotland, and raised in Guernsey. She studied acting ...
)
* ''Ghost Story'' (2014) Andersen Press (published in War Girls)
* ''Eclipsed'' (2015)
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
(published in War & Conflict edited by Benjamin Hulme-Cross)
Prizes and awards
*''2004''
Booktrust Teenage Prize
The Booktrust Teenage Prize was an annual award given to young adult literature published in the UK. The prize was administered by Book Trust, an independent charity which promotes books and reading. The Booktrust Teenage Prize was last awarded ...
(shortlist)
Boy Kills Man
*''2005''
Stockport Schools' Book Award
Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The Rivers Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. It is the main settlement of the wider ...
(shortlist)
Boy Kills Man
*''2006''
De Jonge Jury (Netherlands) (shortlist)
Boy Kills Man
*''2006''
Wirral Paperback of the Year (shortlist)
Boy Kills Man
*''2006''
Renfrewshire Teenage Book Award (shortlist)
The Wild
''The Wild'' is a 2006 animated adventure comedy film directed by Steve "Spaz" Williams with a screenplay by Ed Decter, John J. Strauss, Mark Gibson and Philip Halprin, as well as featuring an ensemble cast consisting of Kiefer Sutherland, ...
*''2007''
Wirral Paperback of the Year (longlist)
The Wild
''The Wild'' is a 2006 animated adventure comedy film directed by Steve "Spaz" Williams with a screenplay by Ed Decter, John J. Strauss, Mark Gibson and Philip Halprin, as well as featuring an ensemble cast consisting of Kiefer Sutherland, ...
*''2013''
North East Teenage Book Award (shortlist) The Savages
*''2014''
Angus Book Award
The Angus Book Award is a literary award for UK authors of teenage fiction. It is awarded by Angus Council in Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-th ...
(winner), the Savages
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whyman, Matt
1969 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of East Anglia
21st-century English novelists
British advice columnists
British writers of young adult literature
English male novelists
21st-century English male writers
People from Amersham
People from Berkhamsted
People from West Sussex
Writers from Buckinghamshire
Writers from Hertfordshire