James Robert Runcie (born 7 May 1959) is a British novelist, documentary filmmaker, television producer and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

. He is a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

and a visiting professor at

Bath Spa University Bath Spa University is a public university in Bath, England, with its main campus at Newton Park, about west of the centre of the city. The university has other campuses in the city of Bath, and one at Corsham Court in Wiltshire. The instit ...

and was Commissioning Editor for Arts on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

from 2016 - 2020.

Early life and education

Runcie was born in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, the son of

Robert Runcie Robert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie, (2 October 1921 – 11 July 2000) was an English Anglican bishop. He was the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991, having previously been Bishop of St Albans. He travelled the world widely t ...

, the former

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, and Rosalind Runcie, a classical pianist. He was educated at the

Dragon School ("Reach for the Sun") , established = 1877 , closed = , type = Preparatory day and boarding school and Pre-Prep school , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Emma Goldsm ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. Founded in 1843 for the sons of Church ...

, and

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the fifth-oldest surviving college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by ...

. In 1981, he earned a first-class English degree from

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. After Cambridge, Runcie went on to attend

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre. BOVTS is an affiliate of the Conservatoire for Dance and Drama. I ...

briefly.

Writing

Runcie has written the novels ''The Discovery of Chocolate'' (2001), ''The Colour of Heaven'' (2003), ''Canvey Island'' (2006), ''East Fortune'' (2009) and ''The Great Passion'' (2022). In 2012, the publication of ''Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death'' drew a favourable critical reception. The book, which consists of six short stand-alone mysteries, is the first in a series of six works of detective fiction, entitled ''

The Grantchester Mysteries ''The Grantchester Mysteries'' is a series of cosy mystery crime fiction books of short stories by the British author James Runcie, beginning during the 1950s in Grantchester, a village near Cambridge in England. The books feature the clergyman ...

''. The second, ''Sidney Chambers and the Perils of the Night'', was published in 2013. The third, ''Sidney Chambers and the Problem of Evil'', was published in 2014, followed by ''Sidney Chambers and the Forgiveness of Sins'' in 2015 and then ''Sidney Chambers and the Dangers of Temptation'' in 2016. The series concluded with ''Sidney Chambers and the Persistence of Love'' in 2017, but a prequel, ''The Road to Grantchester'', was published in 2019. Runcie's prequel to ''The Grantchester Mysteries, The Road to Grantchester'' is set in the years from 1943-1951 and features Sidney Chambers' war-service with the

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

in Italy, his first main love, his decision to become a clergyman, and his curacy amidst the ruins of post-war

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

. It was published in March 2019. Runcie is published by

Bloomsbury Publishing Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. It is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index. Bloomsbury's head office is located in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a U ...

. His sleuth novels have been adapted as an

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

drama titled ''

Grantchester Grantchester is a village and civil parish on the River Cam or Granta in South Cambridgeshire, England. It lies about south of Cambridge. Name The village of Grantchester is listed in the 1086 Domesday Book as ''Grantesete'' and ''Grauntset ...

''. Filmed on location in

and London, the initial six-part series was shown in the UK in the autumn of 2014. The second to fifth series were broadcast in 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2020 respectively. Runcie also writes lifestyle pieces about family and literature for major UK newspapers.

Work in media

From 1983 to 1985, Runcie worked in radio drama for

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: ''BBC Alba'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. It is one of the four BBC national regions, together with the BBC English Regions, BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Northern Ireland. I ...

as a writer and director. His work included ''

Miss Julie ''Miss Julie'' ( sv, Fröken Julie) is a naturalistic play written in 1888 by August Strindberg. It is set on Midsummer's Eve and the following morning, which is Midsummer and the Feast Day of St. John the Baptist. The setting is an estate of ...

'', ''

The White Devil ''The White Devil'' (full original title: ''The White Divel; or, The Tragedy of Paulo Giordano Ursini, Duke of Brachiano. With The Life and Death of Vittoria Corombona the famous Venetian Curtizan'') is a tragedy by English playwright John We ...

'', ''

Roderick Hudson ''Roderick Hudson'' is a novel by Henry James. Originally published between January and December 1875 as a serial in ''The Atlantic Monthly'', it is a bildungsroman that traces the development of the title character, a sculptor. Plot summary Row ...

'', ''

Men Should Weep ''Men Should Weep'' (originally called ''Quancos Should Dance'') is a play by Ena Lamont Stewart, written in 1947. It is set in Glasgow during the 1930s depression, with all the action taking place in the household of the Morrison family. It ...

'', and ''A Private Grief''. More recently, Runcie has produced Arts, Music, and History programmes for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

. He is a freelance director of documentary films, and has produced documentaries featuring the writers

Hilary Mantel Dame Hilary Mary Mantel ( ; born Thompson; 6 July 1952 – 22 September 2022) was a British writer whose work includes historical fiction, personal memoirs and short stories. Her first published novel, ''Every Day Is Mother's Day'', was releas ...

J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and Philanthropy, philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to ...

and

J. G. Ballard James Graham Ballard (15 November 193019 April 2009) was an English novelist, short story writer, satirist, and essayist known for provocative works of fiction which explored the relations between human psychology, technology, sex, and mass medi ...

, as well as making ''My Father'', filmed a week before

's death, and the six-part series ''

How Buildings Learn ''How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They’re Built'' is an illustrated book on the evolution of buildings and how buildings adapt to changing requirements over long periods. It was written by Stewart Brand and published by Viking Press in ...

''. He works freelance for the BBC,

, and

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

. He has worked with presenters including

David Starkey David Robert Starkey (born 3 January 1945) is an English historian and radio and television presenter, with views that he describes as conservative. The only child of Quaker parents, he attended Kendal Grammar School before studying at Cambr ...

Griff Rhys Jones Griffith Rhys Jones (born 16 November 1953) is a Welsh comedian, writer, actor, and television presenter. He starred in a number of television series with his comedy partner, Mel Smith. Rhys Jones came to national attention in the 1980s for h ...

Andrew Motion Sir Andrew Motion (born 26 October 1952) is an English poet, novelist, and biographer, who was Poet Laureate from 1999 to 2009. During the period of his laureateship, Motion founded the Poetry Archive, an online resource of poems and audio reco ...

Alain de Botton Alain de Botton (; born 20 December 1969) is a Swiss-born British author and philosopher. His books discuss various contemporary subjects and themes, emphasizing philosophy's relevance to everyday life. He published ''Essays in Love'' (1993), w ...

, and

Simon Schama Sir Simon Michael Schama (; born 13 February 1945) is an English historian specialising in art history, Dutch history, Jewish history, and French history. He is a University Professor of History and Art History at Columbia University. He fir ...

. In 2009, Runcie was appointed Artistic Director of the

Bath Literature Festival The Bath Literature Festival, held annually in Bath, Somerset, England, was an important date in the national literary calendar, playing host to an array of journalists, novelists, poets, politicians, actors, comedians, writers and biographers bet ...

. He left the post in 2013 to take up a position as Head of Literature and Spoken Word at the

Southbank Centre Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues in London, England, on the South Bank of the River Thames (between Hungerford Bridge and Waterloo Bridge). It comprises three main performance venues (the Royal Festival Hall including the Nat ...

in London. ;''J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life'' From October 2006 to October 2007, Runcie spent a year filming ''

J.K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...

: A Year in the Life'' for ITV, as the author was completing the final novel in the

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

cycle, ''

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the seventh and final novel of the main ''Harry Potter'' series. It was released on 21 July 2007 in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publi ...

''. The programme featured intimate access to Rowling's daily life, and included deeply personal interviews by Runcie with Rowling. Runcie narrated the film; when it was shown in the United States, additional commentary was provided by

Elizabeth Vargas Elizabeth Anne Vargas (born September 6, 1962) is an American television journalist who is the lead investigative reporter/documentary anchor for A&E Networks, and the host for Fox's revival of '' America's Most Wanted''. She began her new positi ...

. This film was transmitted on 30 December 2007 by ITV and included in the ''

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores th ...

'' DVD as a supplement.

Awards

Runcie won a

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) 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. It currently has fourteen r ...

award for his film ''Miss Pym's Day Out'' in 1992, starring

Patricia Routledge Dame Katherine Patricia Routledge, (; born 17 February 1929) is an English actress, singer and broadcaster. For her role as Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC sitcom ''Keeping Up Appearances'' (1990–1995), she was nominated for the BAFTA TV Award f ...

as the novelist

Barbara Pym Barbara Mary Crampton Pym FRSL (2 June 1913 – 11 January 1980) was an English novelist. In the 1950s she published a series of social comedies, of which the best known are ''Excellent Women'' (1952) and '' A Glass of Blessings'' (1958). In 1977 ...

, and he has also received Royal Television Society nominations for ''How Buildings Learn'' and ''The Gentle Art of Making Enemies''. ''Miss Pym's Day Out'' was also nominated for a BAFTA

Huw Wheldon Sir Huw Pyrs Wheldon, (7 May 1916 – 14 March 1986) was a Welsh broadcaster and BBC executive. Early life Wheldon was born on 7 May 1916 in Prestatyn, Flintshire, Wales. He was educated at Friars School, Bangor, at the time an all-boys gra ...

Award for the Best Arts Programme in 1992. He won two BAFTA Scotland Radio Drama Awards for ''Watching Waiters'' and ''Mrs Lynch's Maggot'', and he was nominated for a BAFTA award for the film ''Great Composers –

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

''.

Personal life

In 1985 Runcie married the theatre director and radio drama producer

Marilyn Imrie Marilyn Elsie Imrie (20 November 1947 – 21 August 2020) was a Scottish theatre and radio drama director and producer. Career Marilyn Imrie worked in drama and broadcasting in Scotland and England for over thirty years as a producer and directo ...

, who died in 2020. They had one daughter together, Charlotte Runcie (born 1989), who currently writes as a literary, television and radio critic for the ''

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

''. He is also stepfather to Imrie's daughter Rosie Kellagher (born 1978), who is a freelance theatre director.Neil Cooper
"New voices, new directions and no resting on their laurels"
''Herald Scotland'', 3 April 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2010.

References

External links

* *
Biography
from

Fantastic Fiction information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Runcie, James 1959 births Living people English people of Scottish descent People from Cambridge People from St Albans People educated at The Dragon School People educated at Marlborough College Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge Academics of Bath Spa University Artistic directors English theatre directors English documentary filmmakers English television producers 21st-century English novelists English male novelists 21st-century English male writers Sons of life peers