Julian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford, (born 17 August 1949) is an English actor, novelist, film director and screenwriter, and a
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
peer
Peer may refer to:
Sociology
* Peer, an equal in age, education or social class; see Peer group
* Peer, a member of the peerage; related to the term "peer of the realm"
Computing
* Peer, one of several functional units in the same layer of a ne ...
of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
.
He is primarily known as the author of several ''
Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'' bestseller novels; for the screenplay for the film ''
Gosford Park
''Gosford Park'' is a 2001 satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. It was influenced by Jean Renoir's French classic ''La Règle du jeu'' ('' The Rules of the Game'').
The film stars ...
'', which won the
Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay
The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best Story. Beginning with th ...
in 2002; and as the creator, writer and executive producer of the
multiple award-winning ITV series ''
Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...
'' (2010–2015).
Early life and education
Fellowes was born into a family of the
British landed gentry in
Cairo, Egypt
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metr ...
, the youngest of four boys, to Peregrine Edward Launcelot Fellowes (1912–1999) and his British wife, Olwen Mary (''née'' Stuart-Jones).
His father was a diplomat and
Arabist
An Arabist is someone, often but not always from outside the Arab world, who specialises in the study of the Arabic language and culture (usually including Arabic literature).
Origins
Arabists began in medieval Muslim Spain, which lay on th ...
who campaigned to have
Haile Selassie
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...
, Emperor of Ethiopia, restored to his throne during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.
His great-grandfather was
John Wrightson
Professor John Wrightson Chemical Society, FCS, Royal Agricultural University, MRAC (1840 – 30 November 1916) was a British agriculturalist and the founder of Downton Agricultural College (1880–1906) at Downton, Wiltshire, Downton in Wilts ...
, a pioneer in agricultural education and the founder of
Downton Agricultural College
Professor John Wrightson FCS, MRAC (1840 – 30 November 1916) was a British agriculturalist and the founder of Downton Agricultural College (1880–1906) at Downton in Wiltshire. In 1890 he reputedly became the first person in Britain to ...
. Peregrine's uncle was Peregrine Forbes Morant Fellowes (1883–1955), Air Commodore and DSO.
Fellowes has three older brothers: Nicholas Peregrine James, actor; writer David Andrew; and playwright Roderick Oliver. The siblings' childhood home was at Wetherby Place,
South Kensington
South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...
, and afterwards at
Chiddingly, East Sussex
Chiddingly ( ) is an English village and civil parish in the Wealden District of the administrative county of East Sussex, within historic Sussex, some five miles (8 km) northwest of Hailsham.
The parish is rural in character: it inc ...
, where Fellowes lived from August 1959 until November 1988, and where his parents are buried.
The house in Chiddingly, which had been owned by the
whodunit
A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the c ...
writer
Clifford Kitchin
Clifford Henry Benn Kitchin (17 October 1895 – 4 April 1967) was a British novelist of the early twentieth century.
Biography
The elder son of Clifford Kitchin (1860–1913), a barrister, young Kitchin attended Clifton College and Exeter Col ...
, was within easy reach of London where his father, who had been a diplomat, worked for
Shell
Shell may refer to:
Architecture and design
* Shell (structure), a thin structure
** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses
** Thin-shell structure
Science Biology
* Seashell, a hard o ...
. Fellowes has described his father as one "of that last generation of men who lived in a pat of butter without knowing it. My mother put him on a train on Monday mornings and drove up to London in the afternoon. At the flat she'd be waiting in a snappy little
cocktail dress
A cocktail dress is a dress suitable at semi-formal occasions, sometimes called cocktail parties, usually in the late afternoon, and usually with accessories.
After World War I, the idea of the "working woman" became popular. After 1929, it wa ...
with a delicious dinner and drink. Lovely, really."
The friendship his family developed with another family in the village, the Kingsleys, influenced Fellowes. David Kingsley was head of
British Lion Films
British Lion Films is a film production and distribution company active under several forms since 1919. Originally known as British Lion Film Corporation Ltd, it entered receivership on 1 June 1954. From 29 January 1955 to 1976, the company was kn ...
, the company responsible for many
Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...
comedies. Sometimes "glamorous figures" would visit the Kingsleys' house. Fellowes said that he thinks he "learnt from David Kingsley that you could actually make a living in the film business."
Fellowes was educated at several
private schools
An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British En ...
in Britain, including
Wetherby School
Wetherby School is a group of independent schools for boys aged two to eighteen in Notting Hill, London, owned and operated by the Alpha Plus Education Group. Its prep school is a member of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools. ...
St Philip's School(a Catholic boys school in South Kensington) and
Ampleforth College
Ampleforth College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the English public school tradition located in the village of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1802 as a boys' school, it is situated in the groun ...
, which his father had preferred over Eton. He read English Literature at
Magdalene College, Cambridge
Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Ma ...
, where he was a member of
Footlights
Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club, commonly referred to simply as the Footlights, is an amateur theatrical club in Cambridge, England, founded in 1883 and run by the students of Cambridge University.
History
Footlights' inaugural ...
. He graduated with a 2:1. He studied further at the
Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art Webber may refer to:
* Webber, Kansas, a US city
*Webber Township, Jefferson County, Illinois, USA
*Webber Township, Lake County, Michigan, USA
*Webber International University, in Babson Park, Florida, USA
*Webber (surname)
Webber (/ˈwɛbər/) ...
in London.
Career
Television
Fellowes moved to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
in 1981 and played a number of small roles on television for the next two years, including a role in ''
Tales of the Unexpected''. He believed that his breakthrough had come when he was considered to replace
Hervé Villechaize
Hervé Jean-Pierre Villechaize (; April 23, 1943 – September 4, 1993) was a French actor and painter. He is best known for his role as the evil henchman Nick Nack in the 1974 James Bond film '' The Man with the Golden Gun'', and his role as Mr ...
as the assistant on the television series ''
Fantasy Island
''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tatto ...
'', but the role went to actor
Christopher Hewett
Christopher George Hewett (5 April 1921 – 3 August 2001) was an English actor and theatre director best known for his role as Lynn Aloysius Belvedere on the ABC sitcom ''Mr. Belvedere''.
Career
Hewett was born in Worthing, Sussex to Chri ...
instead.
He was unable to get an audition for the Disney film ''
Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend'' (1985) in Los Angeles, but was offered the role when he was visiting England. When he asked the film's director why he was not able to get an interview in Los Angeles, he was told that they felt the best actors were in Britain.
After this, Fellowes decided to move back to England to further his career, and soon played a leading role in the 1987 TV series ''
Knights of God'' as Brother Hugo, the "ambitious and ruthless second-in-command" of a futuristic military cult. Subsequently, in 1991 he played Neville Marsham in
Danny Boyle
Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on films including '' Shallow Grave'', '' Trainspotting'' and its sequel '' T2 Trainspotting'', '' The Beach'', ''28 Days Later'', '' S ...
's ''For the Greater Good'' and Dr. Jobling in the
1994 BBC adaptation of ''Martin Chuzzlewit''. Other notable acting roles included the role of Claud Seabrook in the acclaimed 1996
BBC drama serial ''
Our Friends in the North
''Our Friends in the North'' is a British television drama serial produced by the BBC. It was originally broadcast in nine episodes on BBC2 in early 1996. Written by Peter Flannery, it tells the story of four friends from Newcastle upon Tyne ...
'' and the 2nd Duke of Richmond in the BBC drama serial ''
Aristocrats
Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'.
At the time of the word' ...
''. He portrayed
George IV as the Prince Regent twice: first in the film ''
The Scarlet Pimpernel
''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in London, having ...
'' (1982) and the second in the 1996 adaptation of
Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell (born 23 February 1944) is an English-American author of historical novels and a history of the Waterloo Campaign. He is best known for his novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe. He has also written ''The Saxon ...
's novel ''
Sharpe's Regiment
''Sharpe's Regiment'' is the seventeenth historical novel in the Richard Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell, first published in 1986. The story is set in England as Sharpe looks for the missing Second Battalion of the South Essex Regiment neede ...
'', as well as playing Major Dunnett in ''
Sharpe's Rifles''. He also played the part of Kilwillie on ''
Monarch of the Glen''. He appeared as the leader of the Hullabaloos in the television adaptation of Arthur Ransome's ''
Coot Club'', called ''
Swallows and Amazons Forever!''.
Aside from acting, he launched a new series on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
in 2004, ''
Julian Fellowes Investigates: A Most Mysterious Murder'', which he wrote and introduced onscreen. He was the presenter of ''
Never Mind the Full Stops'', a panel game show broadcast on
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002 from 2006 to 2007. He created the hugely successful and critically acclaimed period drama ''
Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...
'' for
ITV1
ITV1 (formerly known as ITV) is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the British media company ITV plc. It provides the Channel 3 public broadcast service across all of the United Kingdom except for t ...
in 2010. He won a
Primetime Emmy
The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime E ...
for
outstanding writing and a
Broadcasting Press Guild
The Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) is a British association of journalists dedicated to the topic of general media issues.
History
The Guild was established in 1974 as a breakaway of The Critics' Circle. Currently it groups over 100 staff and f ...
award for writing ''Downton Abbey''. He wrote a new ''
Titanic
RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unite ...
'' miniseries that was shown on ITV1 in March–April 2012.
In April 2015, ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...
'' reported that Fellowes was at work on a new period drama series for
NBC television, to be set in late 19th-century
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, entitled ''
The Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Weste ...
''.
[Alex Ritman – "Downton Abbey's Dowager Countess May Appear in Julian Fellowes' New NBC Drama; 'The Gilded Age' could feature a younger version of the character, said Fellowes", ''The Hollywood Reporter'', 6 April 2015. Retrieved 2015-10-10] Fellowes suggested that a younger version of
Maggie Smith
Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (born 28 December 1934) is an English actress. With an extensive career on screen and stage beginning in the mid-1950s, Smith has appeared in more than sixty films and seventy plays. She is one of the few performer ...
's Dowager Countess character from his ''Downton Abbey'' drama might appear in the new series, saying: "Robert Crawley would be in his early teens, Cora would be a child. A young Violet
he Dowager Countesscould make an appearance."
[ As the title suggests, the series would be set during the time of America's so-called ]Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Wes ...
– the industrial boom era in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries – and portray the upper echelons of New York's high society
High society, sometimes simply society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open to men based ...
during that period.[
Production and writing for ''The Gilded Age'' was updated in January 2016 indicating that filming would start at the end of 2016. As reported in RadioTimes: "NBC's ''The Gilded Age'' is set to start shooting later this year, Fellowes tells RadioTimes.com. Asked whether he'd written the script yet, Fellowes replied, 'No I haven't, no. I'm doing that this year', before adding: 'And then hopefully shooting at the end of the year.'"
In April 2016, it was announced that Fellowes would be the producer of ''The Gilded Age'' when it was reported that Fellowes is "about to begin writing The Gilded Age for NBC, a sort of American Downton about fortunes made and lost in late 19th century New York, which he will also produce."
On 4 June 2016, Fellowes was asked by ''The Los Angeles Times'', "Where does ''The Gilded Age'' stand?" Fellowes replied,
]It stands really with me up to my neck in research, and I'm clearing the decks, so that when I start ''Gilded Age'', I'm only doing ''Gilded Age.'' These people were extraordinary. You can see why they frightened the old guard, because they saw no boundaries. They wanted to build a palace, they built a palace. They wanted to buy a yacht, they bought a yacht. The old guard in New York weren't like that at all, and suddenly this whirlwind of couture descended on their heads. The newcomers redesigned being rich. They created a rich culture that we still have – people who are rich today are generally rich in a way that was established in America in the 1880s, '90s, 1900s. It was different from Europe. Something like Newport would never have happened in any other country, where you have huge palaces, and then about 20 yards away, another huge palace, and 20 yards beyond that another huge palace. In England right up to the 1930s, when people made money, they would buy an estate of 5,000 acres and they'd have to look after Nanny. The Americans of the 1880s and '90s didn't want too much of that.
In August 2016, Fellowes indicated that his plans for ''The Gilded Age'' would not overlap substantially with the characters in ''Downton Abbey'' since most of them would have been children in those earlier "prequel" decades. Writing for ''Creative Screenwriting'', Sam Roads asked Fellowes, "Will there be any connection between The Gilded Age and Downton Abbey?" to which Fellowes stated:
I can't see it really. Someone asked if you would you see any of the Downton characters, but most of them would be children. They said that Violet wouldn't be a child, and I replied that "Yes, I suppose you could see a younger Violet", and this became a newspaper story. "Violet comes from Downton to appear in The Gilded Age!"
It might be fun, but I doubt at the beginning, because I want it to be a new show with new people.
Fellowes wrote an adaptation of the novel ''Doctor Thorne
''Doctor Thorne'' by Anthony Trollope (Chapman and Hall, London, 1858) is the third novel in the ''Chronicles of Barsetshire'' series, between '' Barchester Towers'' and '' Framley Parsonage''. The idea of the plot was suggested to Trollope b ...
'' by one of his favorite writers, Anthony Trollope
Anthony Trollope (; 24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was an English novelist and civil servant of the Victorian era. Among his best-known works is a series of novels collectively known as the '' Chronicles of Barsetshire'', which revolves ar ...
. The ITV adaptation aired on 6 March 2016.
A report in early September 2018 stated that Fellowes had two projects underway, both in development: the Netflix series ''The English Game'' and ''The Gilded Age'' for NBC. In May 2019, ''The Gilded Age'' moved to HBO.
Films
Fellowes wrote the script for ''Gosford Park
''Gosford Park'' is a 2001 satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. It was influenced by Jean Renoir's French classic ''La Règle du jeu'' ('' The Rules of the Game'').
The film stars ...
'', which won the Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology) ...
for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen in 2002. He also won a Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers:
* The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO
* The Writers Gu ...
award for it. In late 2005, Fellowes made his directorial début with the film ''Separate Lies
''Separate Lies'' is a 2005 British drama film directed by Julian Fellowes, who also wrote the screenplay, updating the 1951 novel ''A Way Through the Wood'' by Nigel Balchin, which had already been turned into a stage play under the title '' ...
'', for which he won the award for Best Directorial Début from the National Board of Review
The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...
.
In 2009, Momentum Pictures
Momentum Pictures is a film distributor and a subsidiary of Entertainment One, itself part of Hasbro. Prior to 2013, it was a brand of Canadian distributor Alliance Films used for its releases in the United Kingdom, and was one of the leading in ...
and Sony Pictures
Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Sony Pictures or SPE, and formerly known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc.) is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate that produces, acq ...
released ''The Young Victoria
''The Young Victoria'' is a 2009 British period drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Produce ...
'', starring Emily Blunt, for which Fellowes wrote the original screenplay. Other screenwriting credits include ''Vanity Fair Vanity Fair may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Literature
* Vanity Fair, a location in '' The Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678), by John Bunyan
* ''Vanity Fair'' (novel), 1848, by William Makepeace Thackeray
* ''Vanity Fair'' (magazines), the ...
'', '' The Tourist'' and '' From Time to Time'', which he also directed, and which won Best Picture at the Chicago Children's Film Festival, the Youth Jury Award at the Seattle International Film Festival
The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees. The SIFF runs for more th ...
, Best Picture at the Fiuggi Family Festival in Rome, and the Young Jury Award at Cinemagic in Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...
. His greatest commercial success was '' The Tourist'', which grossed US$278 million worldwide, and for which he co-wrote the screenplay with Christopher McQuarrie
Christopher McQuarrie is an American filmmaker. He received the BAFTA Award, Independent Spirit Award, and Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the neo-noir mystery film ''The Usual Suspects'' (1995).
He made his directorial debut wit ...
and Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck.
Other films in which Fellowes has appeared include '' Full Circle'' (1977), ''Priest of Love
''Priest of Love'' is a British biographical film about D. H. Lawrence and his wife Frieda (née Von Richthofen) played by Ian McKellen and Janet Suzman. It was a Stanley J. Seeger presentation, produced and directed by Christopher Miles and ...
'' (1981), ''The Scarlet Pimpernel
''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in London, having ...
'' (1982), '' Goldeneye: The Secret Life of Ian Fleming'' (1989, as Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...
), ''Damage
Damage is any change in a thing, often a physical object, that degrades it away from its initial state. It can broadly be defined as "changes introduced into a system that adversely affect its current or future performance".Farrar, C.R., Sohn, H., ...
'' (1992), '' Shadowlands'' (1993), ''Jane Eyre
''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...
'' (1996), ''Tomorrow Never Dies
''Tomorrow Never Dies'' is a 1997 spy film, the eighteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions and the second to star Pierce Brosnan as fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by Roger Spottiswoode from a screenplay ...
'' (1997), '' Regeneration'' (1997) and ''Place Vendôme
The Place Vendôme (), earlier known as Place Louis-le-Grand, and also as Place Internationale, is a square in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France, located to the north of the Tuileries Gardens and east of the Église de la Madeleine. It i ...
'' (1998). He has continued his acting career while writing. He unsuccessfully auditioned for the role of Master of Lake-town in the 2012–2014 ''The Hobbit'' series.
Fellowes was the screenwriter and one of the producers for ''Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. The series first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United States o ...
'', which was released in September 2019, and its sequel, '' Downton Abbey: A New Era''. Most members of the cast of the television programme appear in the movie versions.
Novels
Fellowes's novel '' Snobs'' was published in 2004. It focuses on the social nuances of the upper class and concerns the marriage of an upper middle-class girl to a peer. ''Snobs'' was a ''Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'' best-seller. In 2009 his novel ''Past Imperfect'' was published. Another ''Sunday Times'' best-seller, it deals with the débutante
A debutante, also spelled débutante, ( ; from french: débutante , "female beginner") or deb is a young woman of aristocratic or upper-class family background who has reached maturity and, as a new adult, is presented to society at a formal ...
season of 1968, comparing the world then to the world of 2008.
He also wrote, under the pseudonym Rebecca Greville, several romantic novels in the 1970s.
A period novel, ''Belgravia'' began broadcast, in 11 weekly episodes, from April 2016 and is available, via an app, in audio and text format.
Theatre
As an actor, Fellowes began his acting career at the Royal Theatre, Northampton. He has appeared in several West End productions, including Samuel Taylor's ''A Touch of Spring'', Alan Ayckbourn
Sir Alan Ayckbourn (born 12 April 1939) is a prolific British playwright and director. He has written and produced as of 2021, more than eighty full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director o ...
's '' Joking Apart'' and a revival of Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...
's ''Present Laughter
''Present Laughter'' is a comic play written by Noël Coward in 1939 but not produced until 1942 because the Second World War began while it was in rehearsal, and the British theatres closed. The title is drawn from a song in Shakespeare's ''T ...
''. He appeared at the National Theatre in '' The Futurists'', written by Dusty Hughes. As a writer, he penned the script to the West End musical ''Mary Poppins It may refer to:
* ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character.
* Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers.
* ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film star ...
'', produced by Sir Cameron Mackintosh
Sir Cameron Anthony Mackintosh (born 17 October 1946) is a British theatrical producer and theatre owner notable for his association with many commercially successful musicals. At the height of his success in 1990, he was described as being "th ...
and Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
, which opened on Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
in December 2006. He wrote the book for the musical ''School of Rock
''School of Rock'' (titled onscreen as ''The School of Rock'') is a 2003 comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, produced by Scott Rudin, and written by Mike White. The film stars Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, and Sarah Silverman. ...
'' which opened at The Winter Garden on Broadway in December 2015. In May 2016 he was nominated for a Tony.
Writing credits
Parliament
On 13 January 2011, Fellowes was elevated to the peerage
A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks.
Peerages include:
Australia
* Australian peers
Belgium
* Be ...
, being created Baron Fellowes of West Stafford, of West Stafford
West Stafford is a village and civil parish in southwest Dorset, England, situated in the Frome valley east of Dorchester. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 291. The village contains the public house 'The Wise Man Inn', and S ...
in the County of Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , Dor ...
, and on the same day was introduced in the House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
, where he sits on the Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
Benches.
Other interests
Fellowes is involved in volunteer work. He is Chairman of the RNIB
The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is a UK charity offering information, support and advice to almost two million people in the UK with sight loss.
History
The RNIB was founded by Thomas Rhodes Armitage, a doctor who had ey ...
appeal for Talking Books. He is a vice-president
A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...
of the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust and Patron
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...
of a number of charities: the southwest branch of Age UK
Age UK is a registered charity in the United Kingdom, formed on 25 February 2009, and launched on 1 April 2009, which combined the operations of the previously separate charities Age Concern England and Help the Aged to form the UK's largest ch ...
, Changing Faces, Living Paintings, the Rainbow Trust Children's Charity
Rainbow Trust Children's Charity provides emotional and practical support to families who have a child with a life-threatening or terminal illness. Their headquarters are in Leatherhead, Surrey.
They have care workers based in Swindon, Essex, S ...
, Breast Cancer Haven and the Nursing Memorial Appeal. He also supports other causes, including charities concerned with the care of those suffering from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As ...
. He recently opened the Dorset office of the southwest adoption charity, Families for Children. On May 19, 2022, Julian Fellowes was awarded The Saint Nicholas Society of the City of New York, Washington Irving Medal for Literary Excellence. Prior Award winners include author Tom Wolfe, Louis Auchincloss, and David McCullough. Author Washington Irving founded the Society in 1835.Fellowes sits on the Appeal Council for the National Memorial Arboretum
The National Memorial Arboretum is a British site of national remembrance at Alrewas, near Lichfield, Staffordshire. Its objective is to honour the fallen, recognise service and sacrifice, and foster pride in the British Armed Forces and civilian ...
and is a Patron of Moviola
A Moviola () is a device that allows a film editor to view a film while editing. It was the first machine for motion picture editing when it was invented by Iwan Serrurier in 1924.
History
Iwan Serrurier's original 1917 concept for the Moviola ...
, an initiative aimed at facilitating rural cinema screenings in the West Country
The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Glouc ...
. He also sits on the Arts and Media Honours Committee.
Family
On 28 April 1990, Fellowes married Emma Joy Kitchener (born 1963), daughter of The Hon. Charles Kitchener (1920–1982) and a lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...
to Princess Michael of Kent. She is also a great-great-niece of Herbert, 1st Earl Kitchener. He proposed to her only 20 minutes after meeting her at a party, "having spent 19 minutes getting up the nerve". On 15 October 1998 the Fellowes family changed its surname from Fellowes to Kitchener-Fellowes.
Fellowes publicly expressed his dissatisfaction that the proposals to change the rules of royal succession were not extended to hereditary peerage
The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsidi ...
s, which had they been would have allowed his wife to succeed her uncle as Countess Kitchener in her own right. He said: "I find it ridiculous that, in 2011, a perfectly sentient adult woman has no rights of inheritance whatsoever when it comes to a hereditary title." Instead, the title
A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...
became extinct on her uncle's death because there were no male heirs.
On 9 May 2012, the Queen
In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to:
* Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death
The Queen may also refer to:
* Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...
issued a Royal Warrant of Precedence granting Lady Fellowes the same rank and style as the daughter of an earl
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particu ...
, as would have been due to her if her late father had survived his brother and therefore succeeded to the earldom.
Fellowes and his wife have one son, the Honourable
''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' ( American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certa ...
Peregrine Charles Morant Kitchener-Fellowes (born 1991).
Lord Fellowes was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
in 2009. He is also Lord of the manor
Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...
of Tattershall
Tattershall is a village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated on the A153 Horncastle to Sleaford road, east from the point where that road crosses the River Witham. At its eastern end, Tatte ...
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...
and president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
of the Society of Dorset Men. Their main family home is in Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
.
His wife was story editor
Story editor is a job title in motion picture and television production, also sometimes called "supervising producer". In live action television, a story editor is a member of the screenwriting staff who edits scripts, pitches stories, and report ...
for ''Downton Abbey'' and works with charities, including the Nursing Memorial Appeal.
Arms
See also
* List of accolades received by ''Gosford Park''
* List of accolades received by ''The Young Victoria''
* List of awards and nominations received by ''Downton Abbey''
* ''Burke's Landed Gentry
''Burke's Landed Gentry'' (originally titled ''Burke's Commoners'') is a reference work listing families in Great Britain and Ireland who have owned rural estates of some size. The work has been in existence from the first half of the 19th cen ...
1965 edn'', FELLOWES-GORDON ''of Knochespoch''
Honours
Commonwealth honours
; Commonwealth honours
Scholastic
;Honorary degrees
Memberships and Fellowships
References
External links
Lord Fellowes of West Stafford profile
parliament.uk; accessed 12 May 2015.
*
Interview with Bella Stander, Bookreporter.com
* ttp://www.michaelfassbender.org/mainbravoe.html ''The Case of Charles Bravo''
Julian Fellowes's BAFTA Screenwriters' Lecture
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fellowes, Julian
1949 births
20th-century English dramatists and playwrights
20th-century English male actors
20th-century English novelists
21st-century British dramatists and playwrights
21st-century British novelists
21st-century English male actors
21st-century English writers
Actors awarded British peerages
Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge
Alumni of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
Best Original Screenplay Academy Award winners
British expatriates in Egypt
British male television actors
Conservative Party (UK) life peers
Conservative Party (UK) people
Contestants on University Challenge
Deputy Lieutenants of Dorset
English film producers
English game show hosts
English male film actors
English musical theatre librettists
English Roman Catholics
English romantic fiction writers
English male stage actors
English male television actors
English television producers
English television writers
Film directors from London
International Emmy Founders Award winners
Living people
Male actors from London
Male actors from Sussex
People educated at Ampleforth College
People educated at Wetherby School
People from South Kensington
People from Chiddingly
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Showrunners
Television personalities from London
Writers from London
Writers Guild of America Award winners
British male television writers
Literary peers
Downton Abbey
20th-century pseudonymous writers
21st-century pseudonymous writers
Life peers created by Elizabeth II