Timothy "Tim" Sullivan (born 21 February 1958) is a German-born British film and television director and screenwriter, known for his work with Granada Television and his feature film Jack and Sarah (1995). More recently, he is better known as a crime fiction writer, with a series of novels featuring an autistic detective, DS George Cross.
Tim Sullivan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 February 1958 Germany |
| Occupation(s) | Film and television director, screenwriter, novelist |
| Years active | 1981–present |
Early life and education
editTim Sullivan was born in Germany, where his father was stationed with the Royal Air Force. He attended Clifton College in Bristol, England, before gaining an exhibition scholarship to read English and Law at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.[1][2] While at Cambridge, Sullivan was a member of the Cambridge University Amateur Dramatic Club, and partnered with writer Richard Maher on the play Klev, which ran at the Crown Theatre, Hill Place in 1978.[3] He also supplied extras to Chariots of Fire (1981).
Career
editAfter leaving Cambridge Sullivan got a summer job as a chauffeur to Anthony Andrews on the production of Brideshead Revisited. The producer Derek Granger learned that Sullivan was writing a screenplay with Derek Jarman (Bob Upadown), and encouraged him to get a job as a researcher with Granada Television.[1]
After working as a researcher on the first series of Alfresco, Sullivan and Richard Maher partnered to write their first television series, a sitcom entitled The Train Now Leaving, set in the dining carriage of an InterCity train running between London and Manchester. Granada commissioned seven 30-minute scripts for development.[4]
Sullivan stayed at Granada for several more years, directing episodes of series such as Busman's Holiday, Stop That Laughing at the Back, Coronation Street and The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, as well as adapting A Handful of Dust as a feature film for London Weekend Television (1988) and directing Thatcher: The Final Days (1991).[1][5] In 1995, Sullivan wrote and directed his first feature film, Jack and Sarah, starring Richard E. Grant and Samantha Mathis. The film was inspired by the attention a male colleague at Granada received when his childcare arrangements broke down and he had to bring his child into work.[1]
Into the 2000s, Sullivan worked freelance on many television and film projects, including directing the final episode of Cold Feet for Granada, and the one-off comedy drama Catwalk Dogs for Shed Productions.[5] In 2005, having worked on the film Flushed Away, Sullivan was hired by DreamWorks to write an initial script draft for Shrek 4,[6] though his script was abandoned by the time production on the film began.
Sullivan wrote the film Letters to Juliet, starring Amanda Seyfried, which was released in the United States in 2010, taking over $80 million worldwide. He has been developing a film based on the London Marathon and another The Wedding Dress.[5] He has worked with many notable directors and producers in the US including Ron Howard, Scott Rudin and Jeffrey Katzenberg.
In 2020, Sullivan self-published two crime novels featuring the detective DS George Cross, The Dentist and The Cyclist, within four months the two titles achieved over 200,000 downloads and he was signed by British publisher Head of Zeus. Further novels in the DS Cross series, The Patient' 'The Politician, 'The Monk and 'The Teacher' have now been published. The seventh in the series 'The Bookseller' will be published in January of 2025.
In June 2023 he was awarded an MLitt with distinction in Crime Fiction and Forensic investigation at the University of Dundee. He also won the Val McDermid dissertation prize.
Filmography
edit| Year(s) | Title | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Wild Winter | Director | 1 episode of television series |
| 1985 | Hank Wangford at Strangeways | Director | Television special |
| 1985 | Our Backyard | Director | 26 episodes of television series |
| 1985 | TX | Director | 4 episodes of television series |
| 1985 | Hold Tight | Director | 1 series of television game show |
| 1986 | I Feel Fine | Director | 6 episodes of television series |
| 1986 | Busman's Holiday | Director | 14 episodes of television game show |
| 1987 | Stop That Laughing at the Back | Director | 5 episodes of television series |
| 1988 | Coronation Street | Director | 18 episodes of television series |
| 1988 | A Handful of Dust | Screenwriter | Feature film |
| 1990–1992 | El C.I.D. | Director | 2 episodes of television series |
| 1990 | Made in Heaven | Director | 2 episodes of television series |
| 1991 | Thatcher: The Final Days | Director | Television film |
| 1991 | Where Angels Fear to Tread | Screenwriter | Feature film |
| 1993–1995 | The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes | Director | 3 episodes of television series |
| 1995 | Jack and Sarah | Director and screenwriter | Feature film |
| 2003 | Cold Feet | Director | 1 episode of television series |
| 2006 | Flushed Away | Additional screenplay material | Feature film |
| 2007 | Catwalk Dogs | Director | Television film |
| 2010 | Letters to Juliet | Screenwriter | Feature film |
| 2021 | My Little Pony: A New Generation | Writer Co-producer |
Feature film |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Summers, Sue (18 June 1995). "Cinema/ The British are coming (again)". The Independent (Independent Newspapers): p. 32.
- ^ "Tripos results: English, Education", The Times, 5 July 1978, p. 12.
- ^ Staff (17 August 1978). "Current Production". The Stage and Television Today: p. 48.
- ^ Staff (6 October 1983). "Granada takes on cartoon and BR for new comedies". The Stage and Television Today: p. 19.
- ^ a b c Staff (16 June 2008). "In the right direction". The Independent (Independent News & Media): p. 8.
- ^ Staff (6 March 2005). "DreamWorks plans 'Shrek 4'". Variety.com (Reed Business Information). Retrieved on 29 August 2010.
- Tim Sullivan filmography". British Film Institute. Retrieved on 17 April 2010.
External links
edit- Tim Sullivan at United Agents
- Tim Sullivan at Peters Fraser and Dunlop
- Tim Sullivan at IMDb
- "Lights, camera, action" – Profile of Sullivan in Optima, the Fitzwilliam College alumni newsletter (p. 10).
- www.timsullivan.co.uk