Heidi Thomas
Encyclopedia
Heidi Thomas is an English
screenwriter
and playwright
.
in 1985. Her play Indigo was performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company
in their 1987/88 season. Other theatrical work includes Some Singing Blood at London's Royal Court Theatre
, and an adaptation of Ibsen's The Lady from the Sea
, presented in London and at the National Theatre of Norway in Oslo. Her play The House of Special Purpose was staged at the Chichester Festival Theatre
in 2010.
Her screen adaptations
include feature film I Capture the Castle
(2003) and the screenplay for a BBC
television adaptation of Madame Bovary
(2000). In 2007 she was the creator, writer and executive producer
of BBC period drama Lilies
. She wrote the screenplays for two major BBC adaptations of Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford
and a film adaptation of the Noel Streatfeild
novel Ballet Shoes
.
In 2010 she was writer and executive producer
of a major revival of the classic British television drama series Upstairs, Downstairs
for the BBC. She has also written episodes for television series Soldier Soldier
and Dr. Finlay
. Forthcoming work includes a TV adaptation of the 'Call the Midwife' trilogy of books by Jennifer Worth, and a six-part series of Upstairs Downstairs scheduled for release in 2012.
In March 2008, she received the Best Writer award at the UK Royal Television Society
awards for her work on Cranford. In April 2008 she received the Best Writer award at the UK Broadcasting Press Guild
Awards for her work on Cranford, Ballet Shoes, and Lilies. She was nominated for two BAFTA TV Awards for Cranford as well as a Primetime Emmy. In November 2008 she received the Writers' Guild of Great Britain
award for Best TV Series for Cranford. In 2011 she received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Upstairs Downstairs.
Plays
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Career
After reading English at Liverpool University, Thomas gained national attention when her play, Shamrocks And Crocodiles, won the John Whiting AwardJohn Whiting Award
The John Whiting Award is awarded annually to a British or Commonwealth playwright who, in the opinion of a consortium of UK theatres, shows a new and distinctive development in dramatic writing with particular relevance to contemporary society...
in 1985. Her play Indigo was performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
in their 1987/88 season. Other theatrical work includes Some Singing Blood at London's Royal Court Theatre
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
, and an adaptation of Ibsen's The Lady from the Sea
The Lady from the Sea
The Lady from the Sea is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.Kvinnan från havet is a ballet by choreographer Birgit Cullberg, and based on Ibsen's play...
, presented in London and at the National Theatre of Norway in Oslo. Her play The House of Special Purpose was staged at the Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, was designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, and opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Martin in 1962. Subsequently the smaller and more intimate Minerva Theatre was built nearby in 1989....
in 2010.
Her screen adaptations
Literary adaptation
Literary adaptation is the adapting of a literary source to another genre or medium, such as a film, a stage play, or even ace video game...
include feature film I Capture the Castle
I Capture the Castle (film)
I Capture The Castle is a 2003 film directed by Tim Fywell. It is based on the 1948 novel of the same title by Dodie Smith and was adapted to screenplay by Heidi Thomas...
(2003) and the screenplay for a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television adaptation of Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary is Gustave Flaubert's first published novel and is considered his masterpiece. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life...
(2000). In 2007 she was the creator, writer and executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
of BBC period drama Lilies
Lilies (BBC TV series)
Lilies is a British period-drama television series, written by Heidi Thomas, which ran for one eight-episode series in early 2007 on BBC One. The show's tagline was "Liverpool, 1920...
. She wrote the screenplays for two major BBC adaptations of Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford
Cranford (TV series)
Cranford is a British television series directed by Simon Curtis and Steve Hudson. The teleplay by Heidi Thomas was adapted from three novellas by Elizabeth Gaskell published between 1849 and 1858: Cranford, My Lady Ludlow, and Mr Harrison's Confessions...
and a film adaptation of the Noel Streatfeild
Noel Streatfeild
Mary Noel Streatfeild OBE , known as Noel Streatfeild, was an author, most famous for her children's books including Ballet Shoes . Several of her novels have been adapted for film or television.-Biography:...
novel Ballet Shoes
Ballet Shoes (novel)
Ballet Shoes is a classic 1936 children's novel by Noel Streatfeild.Ballet Shoes and the other "Shoes books" have been popular worldwide, since their initial publications from 1936 to 1962.-Plot summary:...
.
In 2010 she was writer and executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
of a major revival of the classic British television drama series Upstairs, Downstairs
Upstairs, Downstairs
Upstairs, Downstairs is a British drama television series originally produced by London Weekend Television and revived by the BBC. It ran on ITV in 68 episodes divided into five series from 1971 to 1975, and a sixth series shown on the BBC on three consecutive nights, 26–28 December 2010.Set in a...
for the BBC. She has also written episodes for television series Soldier Soldier
Soldier Soldier
Soldier Soldier is a British television drama series. The title comes from a traditional song of the same name.Produced by Central Television and broadcast on the ITV network, it ran for a total of seven series and 82 episodes from 1991 to 1997...
and Dr. Finlay
Dr. Finlay
Dr. Finlay is a fictional character, the hero of a series of stories by Scottish author A. J. Cronin.-History:The stories were used as the basis for the long-running BBC television programme, Dr. Finlay's Casebook, screened from 1962 to 1971, and radio series . Based on Cronin's novella entitled...
. Forthcoming work includes a TV adaptation of the 'Call the Midwife' trilogy of books by Jennifer Worth, and a six-part series of Upstairs Downstairs scheduled for release in 2012.
In March 2008, she received the Best Writer award at the UK Royal Television Society
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
awards for her work on Cranford. In April 2008 she received the Best Writer award at the UK Broadcasting Press Guild
Broadcasting Press Guild
The Broadcasting Press Guild is a British association of journalists who specialise in writing and broadcasting about television, radio and the media generally....
Awards for her work on Cranford, Ballet Shoes, and Lilies. She was nominated for two BAFTA TV Awards for Cranford as well as a Primetime Emmy. In November 2008 she received the Writers' Guild of Great Britain
Writers' Guild of Great Britain
The Writers' Guild of Great Britain, established in 1959, is a trade union for professional writers. It is affiliated with both the Trades Union Congress and the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds .-Activities:...
award for Best TV Series for Cranford. In 2011 she received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Upstairs Downstairs.
Selected works
Screenplays- Madame Bovary, 2000, BBC One
- I Capture the CastleI Capture the Castle (film)I Capture The Castle is a 2003 film directed by Tim Fywell. It is based on the 1948 novel of the same title by Dodie Smith and was adapted to screenplay by Heidi Thomas...
, 2003, BBC Films - LiliesLilies (BBC TV series)Lilies is a British period-drama television series, written by Heidi Thomas, which ran for one eight-episode series in early 2007 on BBC One. The show's tagline was "Liverpool, 1920...
, 2007, BBC One - Ballet ShoesBallet Shoes (film)Ballet Shoes is a 2007 British television film, adapted by Heidi Thomas from Noel Streatfeild's 1936 novel Ballet Shoes. It was produced by Granada Productions and premiered on BBC One on 26 December 2007...
, 2007, BBC One - CranfordCranford (TV series)Cranford is a British television series directed by Simon Curtis and Steve Hudson. The teleplay by Heidi Thomas was adapted from three novellas by Elizabeth Gaskell published between 1849 and 1858: Cranford, My Lady Ludlow, and Mr Harrison's Confessions...
, 2007, BBC One - CranfordCranford (TV series)Cranford is a British television series directed by Simon Curtis and Steve Hudson. The teleplay by Heidi Thomas was adapted from three novellas by Elizabeth Gaskell published between 1849 and 1858: Cranford, My Lady Ludlow, and Mr Harrison's Confessions...
, 2009, BBC One - Upstairs Downstairs, 2010, BBC One
Plays
- All Flesh is Grass, 1984, National Youth Theatre
- Indigo, 1988, Royal Shakespeare Company and Almeida Theatre, London
- Shamrocks and Crocodiles, 1987, Liverpool Playhouse and National Theatre Studio
- Some Singing Blood, 1992, Royal Court Theatre
- The House of Special Purpose, 2009, Chichester Festival Theatre
External links
- Q&A: Off Script - Heidi Thomas – Q&A from BBC website