Peter Douglas Nicholls (8 March 1939 – 6 March 2018) was an Australian literary scholar and critic. He was the creator and a co-editor of ''

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction ''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'' (''SFE'') is an English language reference work on science fiction, first published in 1979. It has won the Hugo Award, Hugo, Locus Award, Locus and BSFA Award, British SF Awards. Two print editions appea ...

'' with

John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...

Early career

Born in Australia's state of Victoria in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, he spent two decades from 1968 to 1988 as an

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. The term often refers to a professional, skilled worker, or student from an affluent country. However, it may also refer to retirees, artists and ...

, first in the USA, and then the UK. Nicholls' early career was as a literary academic, originally with the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

. He first travelled to the USA in 1968 with a

Harkness Fellowship The Harkness Fellowship (previously known as the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship) is a program run by the Commonwealth Fund of New York City. This fellowship was established to reciprocate the Rhodes Scholarships and enable Fellows from several co ...

in movie making, and has scripted television documentaries. His significant contributions to

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

scholarship and criticism began during 1971, when he became the first Administrator of the Science Fiction Foundation (UK), a title he had until 1977. He was editor of its journal, '' Foundation: The Review of Science Fiction'', from 1974 to 1978.

''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction''

During 1979, Nicholls edited ''

'' (published in the USA as ''The Science Fiction Encyclopedia''), with

as associate editor. Most of its 730,000 words were written by Nicholls, Clute and two contributing editors. It won the 1980

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) and chosen by its members. The award is administered by th ...

for the Nonfiction Book category. A completely revised, updated, and greatly expanded version of the ''Encyclopedia'', co-edited with Clute, was published in 1993, and won the 1994 Hugo for the same category. A further updating of the work, with revisions and corrections, was later issued in CD-ROM format. The third edition, with Clute and

David Langford David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and Literary criticism, critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science-fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'' and holds the all-time ...

, was released online as a beta text in October 2011.

Other work

Nicholls' other major publications include: ''Science Fiction At Large'' (1976; reprinted 1978 with the title ''Explorations of the Marvellous''), a collection of essays edited by Nicholls from a 1975 symposium; ''

The Science in Science Fiction ''The Science in Science Fiction'' is a book by David Langford David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and Literary criticism, critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science- ...

'' (1983) edited by Nicholls and written by him with

and

Brian Stableford Brian Michael Stableford (25 July 1948 – 24 February 2024) was a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who published a hundred novels and over a hundred volumes of translations. His earlier books were published under the name Br ...

; and ''

Fantastic Cinema ''Fantastic Cinema'' (published in the US as ''The World of Fantastic Films: An Illustrated Survey'') is a book by Peter Nicholls (writer), Peter Nicholls published in 1984. Plot summary ''Fantastic Cinema'' is a book that explores the history of s ...

'' (1984; published in the USA as ''The World of Fantastic Films''). ''Genre Fiction: The Roaring Years'' (2022) is a posthumous collection of his reviews and essays which he had planned, titled and written an introduction for ''circa'' 2012 but was unable to complete. He won several awards for his scholarship, including the Science Fiction Research Association's Pilgrim Award (1980), an Eaton Award (1995) and a Peter McNamara Award (2006). He broadcast movie and book reviews on BBC Radio from 1974 and worked as a publisher's editor 1982–1983. Nicholls was diagnosed with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

during 2000, which gradually curtailed his activities. A movie about his interest and work in science fiction, titled ''The What-If Man'', was completed in 2004.''The What If Man'' (2004)
. Ronin Films (roninfilms.com).

Personal life

Nicholls was the father of five children. His daughter is author and editor Sophie Cunningham. He lived in Melbourne with his wife, Clare Coney, where he died on 6 March 2018 at the age of 78.

References

External links

March 2003 interview
by his daughter Sophie Cunningham
Obituary in ''The Guardian''
by his son Jack Nicholls
''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'', 3rd ed.
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholls, Peter 1939 births 2018 deaths Australian speculative fiction critics Australian speculative fiction editors Writers from Melbourne Hugo Award–winning writers Harkness Fellows Australian encyclopedists Australian non-fiction writers Science fiction critics Australian literary critics Australian expatriates in England Australian expatriates in the United States Speculative fiction editors