Nigel Kneale

Nigel Kneale (born Thomas Nigel Kneale on April 18, 1922 in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England, UK) is a Manx television and film scriptwriter, who has worked mostly in the UK. He is best known for his creation of the character of Professor Bernard Quatermass, who has appeared in three serials for BBC Television, one for Thames Television and three feature film adaptations of the BBC serials for the Hammer company.

Later film and television career

As well as having adapted his own serials for the screen, Kneale also forged a successful screenwriting career adapting other peoples' work for the cinema. He wrote the screenplays for successful film adaptations of Look Back in Anger (1958), The Entertainer (1960) and The First Men in the Moon (1964). Later on in his career he provided the original screenplay for the horror film ' (1982), although he was so displeased with all of the changes that were made to it that he had his name removed from the credits of the final cut. In the same decade, he collaborated with John Landis on the script for a planned re-make of the 1950s film Creature from the Black Lagoon, but this was never eventually produced.

Related Topics:
Look Back in Anger - 1958 - The Entertainer - 1960 - The First Men in the Moon - 1964 - 1982 - John Landis - 1950s - Creature from the Black Lagoon

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much varied television work came for Kneale in the 1960s and 1970s, including stand alone plays such as Year of the Sex Olympics (1968), Wine of India (1970) and The Stone Tape (1972) for the BBC and the horror/sf series Beasts for ATV (1976). He was asked to write for Doctor Who, which was heavily influenced (especially in the early 1970s) by his Quatermass work, but he declined. In later years, his disapproval of Doctor Who became well known, as he considered it too frightening for what was ostensibly a children's programme.

Related Topics:
Year of the Sex Olympics - 1968 - 1970 - The Stone Tape - 1972 - ATV - 1976 - Doctor Who

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Although Kneale often uses science-fiction backgrounds and settings for his scripts, he denies that he is a science-fiction writer and indeed has often expressed an intense dislike for the genre. He sees himself as a writer predominantly of 'straight' drama who happens to sometimes use science-fiction trappings in his stories, although this has not stopped him from becoming a great favourite and something of a legendary figure amongst fans of the genre, particularly in the UK.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the early 1970s Kneale discussed the possibility of making a fourth and final Quatermass serial with the BBC, and although this project eventually came to nothing, Kneale took his scripts to Thames Television, who produced Quatermass (also known as The Quatermass Conclusion) in 1979. A glossy, expensive production, it starred Sir John Mills in the title role and brought to an end the Professor's story, although subsequently in 1996 Kneale penned a drama/documentary set before this and featuring the character for BBC Radio 3, entitled The Quatermass Memoirs.

Related Topics:
Thames Television - Quatermass - 1979 - John Mills - 1996 - BBC Radio 3 - The Quatermass Memoirs

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1981 Kneale tried his hand at writing comedy for television for the first time with the series Kinvig, although it was not a success and he did not attempt to stray outside of drama again. In 1989 he adapted Susan Hill's novel The Woman in Black for television, an adaptation which was generally very well-received, although not by Hill herself. In recent years his output has decreased in his retirement, although he was still writing for television well into the 1990s, contributing episodes to the popular ITV series Kavanagh QC and Sharpe. In the late 1990s Chris Carter approached Kneale to write an episode for The X-Files but Kneale declined the offer.

Related Topics:
1981 - 1989 - Susan Hill - The Woman in Black - ITV - 1990s - Chris Carter - The X-Files

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~