Peter May (born 20 December 1951) is a Scottish television screenwriter, novelist, and

crime writer True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

. He is the recipient of writing awards in Europe and America. ''The Blackhouse'' won the U.S. Barry Award for Crime Novel of the Year and the national literature award in France, the CEZAM Prix Litteraire. ''The Lewis Man'' won the French daily newspaper ''Le Télégramme''s 10,000-euro Grand Prix des Lecteurs. In 2014, ''Entry Island'' won both the Deanston's Scottish Crime Novel of the Year and the UK's ITV Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read of the Year Award. May's books have sold more than two million copies in the UK and several million internationally.

Early life

Peter May was born in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. From an early age he was intent on becoming a novelist, but took up a career as a journalist as a way to start earning a living by writing. He made his first serious attempt at writing a novel at the age of 19, which he sent to

Collins Collins may refer to: People Surname Given name * Collins O. Bright (1917–?), Sierra Leonean diplomat * Collins Chabane (1960–2015), South African Minister of Public Service and Administration * Collins Cheboi (born 1987), Kenyan middle- ...

where it was read by

Philip Ziegler Philip Sandeman Ziegler (born 24 December 1929) is a British biographer and historian. Background Born in Ringwood, Hampshire, Ziegler was educated at St Cyprian's School, Eastbourne, and went with the school when it merged with Summer Field ...

, who wrote him a very encouraging rejection letter. At the age of 21, he won the ''Fraser Award'' and was named Scotland's Young Journalist of the Year. He went on to write for''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...

''and the''

Glasgow Evening Times The ''Glasgow Times'' is an evening tabloid newspaper published Monday to Saturday in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. Called ''The Evening Times'' from 1876, it was rebranded as the ''Glasgow Times'' on 4 December 2019.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 ...

, and left journalism in 1978 to begin to write full-time for television.

Television career

May's novel ''The Reporter'' became the prime-time 13-part television series entitled '' The Standard'' in 1978. May went on to create another major TV series 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 ...

, ''

Squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, de ...

'', a drama involving an

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

rapid deployment

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, de ...

. In the following fifteen years, May earned more than 1,000 TV credits. He created and wrote major drama serials for both BBC and the Independent Television Network in the UK including ''

Machair A machair (; sometimes machar in English) is a fertile low-lying grassy plain found on part of the northwest coastlines of Ireland and Scotland, in particular the Outer Hebrides. The best examples are found on North and South Uist, Harris an ...

'' which he co-created with

Janice Hally Janice may refer to: * Janice (given name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) * ''Janice & Abbey'', a reality TV series * Processor codename of the Samsung Galaxy S Advance Android smartphone * Janice, Łódź Voivodes ...

for

Scottish Television Scottish Television (now, legally, known as STV Central Limited) is the ITV network franchisee for Central Scotland. The channel — the largest of the three ITV franchises in Scotland — has been in operation since 31 August 1957 and is the ...

. The long-running serial was the first major television drama to be made in the Gaelic language and was shot entirely on the

Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis ( gd, Eilean Leòdhais) or simply Lewis ( gd, Leòdhas, ) is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as ...

in the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

. The show, which May also produced, achieved a 33% audience share and regularly appeared in the top ten in the ratings in Scotland, in spite of the fact that it was broadcast with English subtitles because only 2% of the population of Scotland are Gaelic speakers. During his time working in television, May wrote the novels ''Hidden Faces'' (1981) and ''The Noble Path'' (1992), and in 1996 he quit television to write novels.

Novel writing career

China

After quitting television May wrote a series of six novels known as the ''China Thrillers''. To research the series, May made annual trips to China and built up a network of contacts including forensic pathologists and homicide detectives. He gained access to the homicide and forensic science sections of Beijing and Shanghai police forces and has made a study of the methodology of Chinese police and forensic pathology systems. As a mark of their respect for his work, the Chinese Crime Writers' Association made him an honorary member of their Beijing Chapter. He is the only Westerner to receive this honour. He has also contributed a monthly column to the Chinese Police Magazine ''Contemporary World Police''. The books were first published in the UK between 1999 and 2004 and subsequently published worldwide in translation. New editions were published for the United States and UK in 2016/17 with an introduction by May explaining the historical setting of the books.

France

Peter May lives in France and his China Thrillers have received several nominations for awards in that country. In 2007 he won the Prix Intramuros. This prize is unique in France as it is awarded by juries of readers made up of prisoners in French penitentiaries. The books under consideration are reduced to a shortlist of 6 finalists and the authors of the shortlisted books then have to travel to various French prisons to be interviewed by panels of detainees. In 2007, May was the only non-French author in the shortlist. He received the prize at the annual Polar&Co literary festival in

Cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the Communes of France, commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the Departments of France, departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cog ...

. ''The Enzo Files'' is set in France and is centred on the work of half-Italian, half-Scottish Enzo Macleod. This former forensic scientist, now working as a biology professor at a French university becomes involved in applying the latest scientific methods to solve cold cases. May tried to ensure authenticity in the details of his books by researching in France just as he did in China. When writing ''The Critic'' – which involves the wine industry and is set in Gaillac, France – May took a course in wine-tasting, picked grapes by hand, and was invited by the winemakers of the region to be inducted as a ''Chevalier de la Dive Bouteille de Gaillac'' in December 2007. In April 2016, after 15 years of living full-time in France and a connection with the department of the Lot that goes back more than 40 years, May was welcomed as a French citizen at a ceremony of naturalisation by Catherine Ferrier, the Préfète of the Lot.

Second Life

While working on his standalone thriller ''Virtually Dead'', May researched the book by creating an avatar in the online world of

Second Life ''Second Life'' is an online multimedia platform that allows people to create an avatar for themselves and then interact with other users and user created content within a multi player online virtual world. Developed and owned by the San Fra ...

and opening the Flick Faulds private detective agency. He spent a year in Second Life, working as a private detective, and was hired by clients for cases ranging from protection from harassment by stalkers to surveillance and infidelity investigations.

''The Lewis Trilogy''

After being turned down by all the major British publishers, '' The Blackhouse'', the first book in 'The Lewis Trilogy', was published first in May's adopted home of France in French translation at the end of 2009. The book was hailed as "a masterpiece" by the French daily newspaper ''L'Humanité'' and was immediately nominated for several literary awards in France. It won the Prix des Lecteurs at Le Havre's Ancres Noires Festival in 2010 and won the French national literature award, the

Cezam Prix Littéraire Inter CE The Cezam Prix Litteraire Inter CE is a literary prize which was established in France in 1997. Its judging panel of more than 3600 readers who meet in groups to discuss, critique and individually rate the books, makes it one of the largest adjud ...

at an award ceremony in Strasbourg in October 2011. ''The Blackhouse'' went on to be published all over Europe and was bought by British publishers

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...

who brought it out in February 2011. It is the first of three books to be set in the

, an archipelago off the North West coast of Scotland. ''The Blackhouse'' was chosen for the

Richard & Judy Book Club ''Richard & Judy'' (also known as ''Richard & Judy's New Position'') is a British television chat show presented by the married couple Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan. The show originally aired on Channel 4 from 26 November 2001 to 22 Augus ...

autumn 2011 list. The second book in the trilogy, ''The Lewis Man'', was published in January 2012, and spent 18 weeks in the UK hardbacks best sellers' list. It has won two French literature awards, the Prix des Lecteurs at Le Havre's Ancres Noires Festival, 2012 and the Prix des Lecteurs du Télégramme, readers prize of France's Le Télégramme newspaper; the 10,000 euro award was presented to May at a ceremony in Brest in May 2012. ''The Lewis Man'' won the 2012 Prix International at the Cognac Festival. The third book in the trilogy, ''The Chessmen'', was published in January 2013. It was shortlisted for the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Book of the Year 2014. The Lewis Trilogy has sold more than a million copies in the UK alone.

Standalone novels

''Entry Island'', Peter May's first book after the Lewis Trilogy, won the Deanstons Scottish Crime Book of the Year 2014, the UK national prize, the Specsavers ITV Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read of the Year 2014 and the French Trophée 813 for the Best Foreign Crime Novel of the year 2015. The book is partly set on a remote island in modern-day Canada and partly set on the Isle of Lewis 150 years earlier during the Highland Clearances. ''Runaway'' is a crime novel based on Peter May's real experiences of running away from home in Glasgow seeking fame and fortune in London with members of a musical group that he was part of in the 1960s. The story is told through two storylines, one in 1965 in which five teenagers embark on a trip that ends with tragic consequences, and the other in 2015, where three of the men retrace their steps from Scotland to London fifty years later in order to solve a murder. Published in the UK in 2016, ''Coffin Road'' is a standalone thriller set on the

Isle of Harris Harris ( gd, Na Hearadh, ) is the southern and more mountainous part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Although not an island itself, Harris is often referred to in opposition to the ''Isle of Lewis'' as t ...

. The story has an ecological theme involving links between big pharmaceutical companies and

colony collapse disorder Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is an abnormal phenomenon that occurs when the majority of worker bees in a honey bee colony disappear, leaving behind a queen, plenty of food, and a few nurse bees to care for the remaining immature bees. While s ...

in bees. Although it is not a follow-up to May's Lewis Trilogy, the character of George Gunn, a policeman in the Lewis Trilogy features as a policeman in Coffin Road. ''I'll Keep You Safe'' (published in the UK in 2018) opens in Paris, France, but the action quickly transfers to the Western Isles of Scotland. A thriller set in the world of high fashion it is linked to the rural production of hand-woven Harris Tweed. ''A Silent Death'' published in the UK in 2020, is a police thriller set in Andalucia, Spain, and Gibraltar. Its action involves the criminal background to the Costa del Sol and features a Scottish policeman on the trail of a Scottish drug lord. ''Lockdown'' was also published worldwide in 2020 although it was written 15 years earlier. The story takes place in the city of London during a lockdown resulting from a global pandemic. May stated that the book was not published at the time because British editors thought the idea of London under siege from a virus "was unrealistic and could never happen”.

Books, television and film writing credits

''The Lewis Trilogy''

* '' The Blackhouse'' (

2011) * '' The Lewis Man'' (

2012) * ''

The Chessmen The Chessmen were an American garage rock band from Denton, Texas, near Dallas, who were active in the 1960s. They were one of the most popular bands in the region and recorded for Bismark Records, where they recorded three singles including, ...

'' (

2013)

''The Enzo Files''

* '' Extraordinary People'' (published in United States as ''Dry Bones'' by

Poisoned Pen Press Poisoned Pen Press is a publisher of mystery fiction based in Scottsdale, Arizona, US. Poisoned Pen Press typically publishes thirty-six new hardcover mysteries per year, thirty-six new large type editions of those hardcovers, and between thirty a ...

2006), (

2013) * ''

The Critic ''The Critic'' was an American primetime adult animated sitcom revolving around the life of New York film critic Jay Sherman, voiced by Jon Lovitz. It was created by writing partners Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who had previously worked as writers a ...

'' (published in United States as ''A Vintage Corpse'' by

2007), (

2013) * '' Blacklight Blue'' (

2008), (

2013) * '' Freeze Frame'' (

2010), (

2013) * '' Blowback'' (

2011), (

2013) * ''Cast Iron'' (Riverrun 2017) * ''The Night Gate'' (Riverrun 2021)

''The China Thrillers''

* '' The Firemaker'' (

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint (trade name), imprint of Hachette (publisher), Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs ...

1999), (

St Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

2005), (

2008), (

E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2016) * '' The Fourth Sacrifice'' (

2000), (

2007) (

2008), ( Quercus E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2016) * ''

The Killing Room ''The Killing Room'' is a 2009 psychological thriller film directed by Jonathan Liebesman and starring Clea DuVall, Nick Cannon, Chloë Sevigny and Timothy Hutton. It premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. It was distributed internationally ...

'' (

2001), (

2008) (

2009), ( Quercus E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2016) * '' Snakehead'' (

2002), (

2009), ( Quercus E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2017) * '' The Runner'' (

2003), (

2010), ( Quercus E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2017) * ''

Chinese Whispers Chinese whispers (some Commonwealth English) or telephone (American English and Canadian English) is an internationally popular children's game. It is also called transmission chain experiments in the context of cultural evolution research, and ...

'' (

2004), (

2009), ( Quercus E-books 2012), (Riverrun 2017) * ''The Ghost Marriage'' (Éditions Didier 2010), (

2017)

''Standalone novels''

* '' The Reporter'' (

Corgi The Welsh Corgi ( or Corgi, plural Corgis, or occasionally the etymologically consistent Corgwn; ) is a small type of herding dog that originated in Wales. The name ''corgi'' is derived from the Welsh words and (which is mutated to ), meani ...

, 1978) * ''

Fallen Hero "Fallen Hero" is the twenty-third aired episode (production #123) of the television series ''Star Trek: Enterprise''. Captain Archer is ordered to transport Vulcan Ambassador V'Lar from a planet where her integrity has been called into questio ...

'' ( NEL, 1979) * ''

Hidden Faces People often see hidden faces in things. Depending on the circumstances, this is referred to as pareidolia, the perception or recognition of a specific pattern or form in something essentially different. It is thus also a kind of optical illusion ...

'' (Piatkus 1981), published as ''

The Man With No Face Randall Flagg is a fictional character created by American author Stephen King, who has appeared in at least nine of his novels. Described as "an accomplished sorcerer and a devoted servant of the Outer Dark", he has supernatural abilities involv ...

'' (

1982), (Riverrun 2019) * '' The Noble Path'' (Piatkus 1992), (

1993), (Riverrun 2019) * '' Virtually Dead'' (

2010) * ''

Entry Island Entry Island (french: Île-d’Entrée) is an island off the east coast of the Magdalen Islands, which are part of the Canadian province of Quebec. The island is wide and long. The island is located from the main port of Cap-aux-Meules of t ...

'' (

2014) * ''

Runaway Runaway, Runaways or Run Away may refer to: Engineering * Runaway reaction, a chemical reaction releasing more heat than what can be removed and becoming uncontrollable * Thermal runaway, self-increase of the reaction rate of an exothermic proce ...

'' (

2015) * ''Coffin Road'' (

2016) * ''I'll Keep You Safe'' (Riverrun 2018) * ''A Silent Death'' (Riverrun 2020) * ''

Lockdown A lockdown is a restriction policy for people, community or a country to stay where they are, usually due to specific risks (such as COVID-19) that could possibly harm the people if they move and interact freely. The term is used for a prison ...

'' (Riverrun 2020)

''Photo books''

* ''

Hebrides The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebrid ...

'' (

2013) Photo companion to The Lewis Trilogy, with photographs by David Wilson.

''Television drama''

* '' The Standard'' (

1978) (13 episodes) creator, writer * ''

'' (

1982) (10 episodes) co-creator, writer * ''

Take The High Road ''Take the High Road'' (renamed ''High Road'' from 1994 to 2003) was a Scottish soap opera produced by Scottish Television, which started in February 1980 as an ITV network daytime programme, and was broadcast until 2003. It was set in the ficti ...

'' (

1980 – 1992) writer (200+ episodes), story & script editor (700+ episodes). * '' The Ardlamont Mystery'' (

1985) (Single drama) writer. * ''

'' (

1992–96) (99 episodes) co-creator and producer.

''Film''

* ''The Killing Room (Les Disparues)'' movie to be produced by French production company, French Connection in partnership with Korean Dream Capture Studios Action to be transferred from Shanghai, China to Seoul, South Korea.

Awards and honours

* Fraser Award (1973) winner of ''Scottish Young Journalist of the Year Award'' * 17th International Celtic Film and Television Festival (1996) ''Machair'' nominated for ''Best Drama Serial Award'' * Elle Magazine, Grand Prix de Littérature (2006) ''The Firemaker'' runner up in category ''Best Crime Novel'' * 2007 Prix Intramuros (France) ''Snakehead'' winner at the ''Salon Polar & Co, Cognac'' * 2007 Prix International (France) ''Snakehead'' shortlisted at the ''Salon Polar & Co, Cognac'' * 2008 Prix International (France) ''Chinese Whispers'' shortlisted at the ''Salon Polar & Co, Cognac'' * 2010 Prix Ancres Noires ''L'Île des chasseurs d'oiseaux'' (The Blackhouse) winner of the Prix des Lecteurs at the ''Les Ancres Noires book festival, Le Havre'' * 2011

''L'Île des chasseurs d'oiseaux'' (The Blackhouse) winner of the CEZAM Prix Litteraire Inter CE national French Literature Prize. * 2012 Prix Ancres Noires (2012) ''L'Homme de Lewis'' (The Lewis Man) winner of the Prix des Lecteurs at the ''Les Ancres Noires book festival, Le Havre'' * 2012 Grand Prix des Lecteurs du Télégramme (2012) ''L'Homme de Lewis'' (The Lewis Man) winner of the Prix des Lecteurs du Télégramme, 10,000 Euro Readers' Prize of French daily newspaper. * 2012 Prix International, Cognac Festival''L'Homme de Lewis'' won the 2012 Prix International at the Cognac Festival. * 2013

Macavity Award The Macavity Awards are a literary award for mystery writers. Nominated and voted upon annually by the members of the Mystery Readers International, the award is named for the " mystery cat" of T. S. Eliot's ''Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats'' ...

for Best Mystery Novel (USA) ''The Blackhouse'' shortlisted * 2013

Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award The Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award is one of the UK's top crime-fiction awards, sponsored by Theakston's Old Peculier. It is awarded annually at Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of ...

(UK) ''The Lewis Man'' shortlisted * 2013 Barry Award for Best Crime Novel (USA) ''The Blackhouse'' won the Barry Award for Best Novel of the Year at a ceremony at Bouchercon, Albany NY. * '2014

(UK) ''The Chessmen'' shortlisted * 2014 Deanstons Scottish Crime Book of the Year ''Entry Island'' won the Deanstons Scottish Crime Book of the Year Award at the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival in Stirling September 2014. * 2014 Specsavers ITV Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read of the Year ''Entry Island'' won the Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read of the Year Award at the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards ceremony in London, October 2014. * 2015

Dagger in the Library The Dagger in the Library (Golden Handcuffs in 1992–1994) is an annual award given by the British Crime Writers' Association to a particular "living author who has given the most pleasure to readers". Yearly shortlists are drawn up of the ten auth ...

UK Crime Writers' Association award for an author's body of work in British libraries (UK) shortlisted * 2015

(UK) ''Entry Island'' shortlisted * 2015 Trophée 813 (France) ''Entry Island'' (L'Île du Serment) won the Trophée 813 for "Best Foreign Crime Novel" awarded by the French magazine Review 813. * 2021 CWA

winner of this award which recognises the popularity of an author’s body of work with readers and users of libraries.

References

External links

* * * * * * *
The story behind Extraordinary People – Online Essay by Peter May
at Upcoming4.me {{DEFAULTSORT:May, Peter 1951 births Living people Scottish journalists Scottish male novelists Scottish mystery writers Scottish crime fiction writers Scottish thriller writers Writers from Glasgow Scottish dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Scottish novelists 20th-century Scottish dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Scottish novelists 21st-century Scottish dramatists and playwrights Barry Award winners People with acquired French citizenship