N. J. Crisp Explained

N. J. Crisp
Birth Date:11 December 1923
Birth Place:Southampton, England
Death Place:Southampton, England
Occupation:Novelist, playwright and screenwriter.
Period:1959–2005
Genre:Comedy, drama, adventure, science fiction
Spouse:Marguerite Lowe
Children:3 sons, 1 daughter

Norman James Crisp (11 December 1923 – 14 June 2005), known as a writer only by his initials and surname, N. J. Crisp, was a prolific British television writer, dramatist and novelist.

In the sixties after writing some single dramas, Crisp moved to writing for serials and turned out scripts for many BBC series including Compact, R3, Dixon of Dock Green, Dr Finlay's Casebook, Colditz and Secret Army.

In 1968, he co-created The Expert, a serial about a forensic scientist, with its producer Gerard Glaister. Four years later the pair repeated these roles with the boardroom drama The Brothers.

His 1996 play That Good Night starred Donald Sinden, Nigel Davenport, Lucy Fleming, Patrick Ryecart and Julie-Kate Olivier and was directed by Edward Hall. The film of the same title, based on Crisp's play, received its world premiere in June 2017 at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. It was John Hurt's final film, and was nominated for the Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature Film.

Crisp's 1987 psychological thriller Dangerous Obsession was filmed in 1999 as Darkness Falls, starring Ray Winstone, Tim Dutton and Sherilyn Fenn. However, Crisp was so appalled at the end result and how his famously intricate plot had been turned on its head without his permission that he insisted on having his name removed from the final print.

He was married to Marguerite (née Lowe), had three sons and one daughter and five grandchildren.

Writing credits

ProductionNotesBroadcaster
The Dark Man
  • Television drama (1960)
BBC Television
BBC Sunday-Night Play
  • "A Kind of Strength" (1961)
  • "The Alderman" (1962)
  • "The Man Who Opted Out" (1962)
  • "The Stepfather" (1962)
BBC Television
ITV Play of the Week
  • "Two on the Beach" (1961)
  • "The Gentle Assassin" (1962)
  • "Danger Zone" (1963)
ITV
24-Hour Call
  • "Cry for Help" (1963)
ITV
Taxi!
  • "The Runaway" (1963)
  • "The Accident" (1963)
BBC Television
Compact
  • "A Job for the Boy" (1963)
BBC Television
It's a Woman's World
  • "Jean" (1964)
ITV
Dixon of Dock Green
  • 66 episodes (1964–1972, 1974–1975)
BBC1
The Sullavan Brothers
  • "The Guilty Go Free" (1965)
ITV
Armchair Mystery Theatre
  • "The Hunter" (1965)
ITV
The Man in Room 17
  • "The Seat of Power" (1965)
ITV
R3
  • "The Astronaut" (1964)
  • "A State of Anxiety" (1964)
  • "Patterns of Behaviour" (1965)
  • "The Fratton Experiment" (1965)
  • "Experiment in Death" (1965)
BBC1
The Flying Swan
  • "The Cupboard" (1965)
  • "The Contract" (1965)
BBC1
Quick Before They Catch Us
  • "Power of Three" (1966)
BBC1
Trapped
  • "Journey Into Nowhere" (1967)
ITV
The Revenue Men
  • 6 episodes (1967–1968)
BBC2
The First Lady
  • "A Little Goodwill" (1968)
  • "Yes, But Who Am I?" (1968)
BBC1
Dr. Finlay's Casebook
  • 15 episodes (1964–1967, 1969)
BBC1
The Doctors
  • "Episode #1.7" (1969)
  • "Episode #1.8" (1969)
BBC1
Doomwatch BBC1
Codename
  • "Target" (1970)
BBC2
With Love in Mind
  • Feature film (1970)
N/A
Owen, M.D.
  • 6 episodes (1971–1972)
BBC1
The Long Chase
  • 13 episodes (1972)
BBC1
The Man Who Was Hunting Himself
  • Television miniseries (1973)
BBC1
Spy Trap
  • 7 episodes (1972–1973)
BBC1
Orson Welles Great Mysteries
  • "The Power of Fear" (1973)
  • "Ice Storm" (1974)
ITV
Colditz
  • "Welcome to Colditz" (1972)
  • "Bribery and Corruption" (1972)
  • "Arrival of a Hero" (1974)
  • "The Gambler" (1974)
  • "Death Sentence" (1974)
BBC1
You're on Your Own BBC1
Oil Strike North
  • "The Floating Bomb" (1975)
  • "Shore Leave" (1975)
  • "The Fatal Hours: Part 1" (1975)
  • "The Fatal Hours: Part 2" (1975)
BBC1
Dangerous Knowledge
  • 6 episodes (1976)
ITV
The Expert
  • 62 episodes (1968–1976)
BBC1
The Brothers
  • 92 episodes (1972–1976)
BBC1
The Gotland Deal
  • First book in the 'Sidney Kenyon' series (1976)
Novel
Jubilee
  • "Ramsey" (1977)
BBC1
The Odd Job Man
  • Hardback Edition (1977)
Novel
The Mackinnons
  • "Man from the Past" (1977)
  • "Working Weekend" (1977)
  • "The Ex-Mrs. Mackinnon" (1977)
  • "A New Life" (1977)
BBC1
Secret Army
  • 9 episodes (1977–1979)
BBC1
The London Deal
  • Second book in the 'Sidney Kenyon' series (1978)
Novel
Enemy at the Door
  • "The Librarian" (1978)
  • "The Jerrybag" (1978)
  • "Post Mortem" (1980)
  • "The Right Blood" (1980)
ITV
A Family Affair
  • Published the same year as his BBC TV Drama (1979)
Novel
A Family Affair
  • 10 episodes (1979)
BBC1
Jet Set
  • Theatre Royal, Bath (1979–1980)
Stage Play
Buccaneer
  • 13 episodes (1980)
BBC1
Festival
  • Hardback edition (1981)
Novel
Squadron
  • "Independence Day" (1982)
BBC1
The Brink
  • Hardback edition (1982)
Novel
Yesterday's Gone
  • Hardback edition (1983)
Novel
The Odd Job Man
  • Television miniseries (1984)
BBC1
Sherlock Holmes and the Masks of Death Channel 4
Fighting Chance
  • Apollo (Shaftesbury Avenue), London (1985–1985)
Stage Play
Murder Elite
  • Feature film (1985)
N/A
Strike It Rich!
  • "Suspicions" (1986)
  • "Extraordinary General Meeting" (1986)
BBC1
In the Long Run
  • The first book in the 'Stephen Haden' series (1987)
Novel
The Ninth Circle
  • The second book in the 'Stephen Haden' series (1988)
Novel
Dangerous Obsession
  • Theatre Royal, Bath (1989–1990)
Stage play
Sunday Pursuit
  • Short film (1990)
HTV
Coup de Foudre
  • "Retour" (co-written with Jean Curtelin, 1991)
Canal+
France 2
Suspicions
  • Full Length play, Drama (1992)
Stage play
That Good Night Stage play
That Good Night
  • World premiere in June 2017
  • Released in UK cinemas on 11 May 2018
Film

References

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