Meera Syal

FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 600 Fellows, elec ...

(born Feroza Syal; 27 June 1961) is a English comedian, writer, playwright, singer, journalist and actress. She rose to prominence as one of the team that created '' Goodness Gracious Me'' and portraying Sanjeev's grandmother, Ummi, in ''

The Kumars at No. 42 ''The Kumars at No. 42'' is a British television show. It won an International Emmy in 2002 and 2003, and won a Peabody Award in 2004. It ran for seven series totalling 53 episodes. It was reportedly a favourite of Queen Elizabeth II. Plot Th ...

''. She became one of the UK's best-known Asian personalities. She was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the

1997 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1997 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries ...

and in 2003 was listed in '' The Observer'' as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to drama and literature.

Early-life

Syal was born on 27 June 1961 in Wolverhampton and grew up in

Essington Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England, located near the city of Wolverhampton and towns of Walsall, Bloxwich, Cannock and Brewood. The villages of Cheslyn Hay, Great Wyrley, Coven, Penkridge and Featherston ...

, Staffordshire, a mining village a few miles to the north. Her

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

parents; Surinder Syal (father) and Surinder Kaur Uppal (mother), came to the United Kingdom from New Delhi. Her father was

Khatri Khatri is a caste of the Indian subcontinent that is predominantly found in India, but also in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the subcontinent, they were mostly engaged in mercantilistic professions such as banking and trade, they were the d ...

and her mother was Jat. When she was young, the family moved to Bloxwich, north of Walsall. This landscape, and the family's status as the only Asian family in the small

Midlands The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Mercia, Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in ...

mining village of Essington, was later to form the backdrop to her novel (later filmed) ''

Anita and Me ''Anita and Me'' is Meera Syal's debut novel, and was first published in 1996. It is a semi-autobiographical novel, based on Syal's childhood in the mining village of Essington, Staffordshire, which won the Betty Trask Award. The story revolves ...

'', which Syal described in a 2003

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 exam. ...

interview as semi-autobiographical. She attended

Queen Mary's High School Queen Mary's High School, situated on Upper Forster Street, just outside Walsall town centre, is an all-female selective-education and grammar school and entry in Year 7 is by passing an entrance exam. It is twinned with Queen Mary's Grammar Sch ...

in nearby Walsall and then studied English and Drama at

Manchester University , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Unive ...

, graduating with a Double First.

Acting and writing career

During her studies, Syal joined the Stephen Joseph Studio, acting and latterly writing stage plays. On graduation, she had secured a place to study for an MA in drama and psychotherapy at the University of Leeds, and then to study for a PGCE to teach. However, she had also co-written the one-woman play ''One of Us'' with Jackie Shapiro, in which Syal performed all fifteen parts, about a West Midlands-born ethnic Indian girl who ran away from home to become an actress. First performed at the Stephen Joseph Studio, she then performed it at the

National Student Drama Festival The UK based National Student Drama Festival (NSDF) was founded in 1956 with the purpose of creating new art, new artists and new communities. It also runs a charity aimed at empowering young artists. The NSDF is targeted towards people age ...

where it won a prize to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival, where it also won a prize. As a result, a director from the Royal Court Theatre contacted Syal, and asked her to perform in a play at the Royal Court on a three-year contract. Syal wrote the screenplay for the 1993 film ''

Bhaji on the Beach ''Bhaji on the Beach'' is a 1993 British comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha (in her feature film directorial debut) and written by Meera Syal. Plot A community group of British women (mostly Punjabis of various faiths) of differen ...

'', directed by

Gurinder Chadha Gurinder Chadha, (born 10 January 1960) is a British film director of Indian origin. Most of her films explore the lives of Indians living in England. The common theme among her work showcases the trials of Indian women living in the UK and ho ...

, of ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' (also known as ''Kick It Like Beckham'') is a 2002 sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knight ...

'' fame. In 1996 she played Miss Chauhan, a high school soccer coach in the film Beautiful Thing. She was on the team that wrote and performed in the

comedy sketch show '' Goodness Gracious Me'' (1996–2001), originally on radio and then on television. She was a scriptwriter on

A.R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...

and

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musical ...

's '' Bombay Dreams'' and she played the grandmother Sushila in the

International Emmy The International Emmy Awards, or International Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based International Academy of Television Arts and Sci ...

-award-winning series ''

'', which ran for seven series, reviving the character in 2021 for

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 Talk radio, spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history fro ...

's ''Gossip and Goddesses with Granny Kumar''. In October 2008, she starred in the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream a ...

sitcom '' Beautiful People''. This role, as Aunty Hayley, continued in 2009. Syal starred in the eleventh series of ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama ''Casualty'', and p ...

'' as consultant Tara Sodi. In 2009, she guest starred in ''Minder'' and starred in the film ''Mad, Sad & Bad''. In 2010, she played

Shirley Valentine ''Shirley Valentine'' is a one-character play by Willy Russell. Taking the form of a monologue by a middle-aged, working class Liverpool housewife, it focuses on her life before and after a transforming holiday abroad. Plot Wondering what ha ...

in a one-woman show at the

Menier Chocolate Factory The Menier Chocolate Factory is a 180-seat off-West End theatre, which comprises a restaurant, bar and rehearsal rooms. It is located in a former 1870s Menier Chocolate Company factory at 53 Southwark Street, a major street in the London Borou ...

, later transferring to Trafalgar Studios. In the same year she played Nasreen Chaudhry in two episodes of ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'' alongside Matt Smith.

Other notable appearances

Syal is an occasional singer, having achieved a number one record with Gareth Gates and her co-stars from ''The Kumars at No. 42'' with "

Spirit in the Sky "Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in late 1969 from the album of the same name. The single became a gold record, selling two million copies ...

", the

Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic epis ...

single. She earlier (1988) provided vocals for a bhangra version of "Then He Kissed Me", composed by

Biddu Biddu Appaiah (born 8 February 1944) is a British-Indian singer-songwriter, composer, and music producer who composed and produced many worldwide hit records during a career spanning five decades. Considered one of the pioneers of disco, Euro ...

and with the Pakistani pop star

Nazia Hassan Nazia Hassan (3 April 1965 – 13 August 2000) was a Pakistani singer-songwriter, lawyer and social activist. Referred to as the Queen of South Asian pop, she is considered one of the most influential singers in the subcontinent. Starting in ...

, as part of the short-lived girl band Saffron. In June 2003 she appeared as a guest on

's '' Desert Island Discs'' programme with a selection of music by Nitin Sawhney, Madan Bala Sindhu, Joni Mitchell, Pizzicato Five,

Sukhwinder Singh Sukhwinder Singh (born 18 July 1971) is an internationally acclaimed Indian playback singer who primarily sings Bollywood songs. He is famous internationally for singing " Jai Ho" from the film '' Slumdog Millionaire'' which won an Academy Awa ...

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and Singing, vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and se ...

and others. The luxury she chose to ease her life as a castaway was a piano. Having studied English at university and penned two novels and a variety of scripts and screenplays, Syal was chosen as one of the guests on "The Cultural Exchange" slot of '' Front Row'' on 30 April 2013, when she nominated ''

To Kill a Mockingbird ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' is a novel by the American author Harper Lee. It was published in 1960 and was instantly successful. In the United States, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' has become a ...

'' by

Harper Lee Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926February 19, 2016) was an American novelist best known for her 1960 novel ''To Kill a Mockingbird''. It won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize and has become a classic of modern American literature. Lee has received numerou ...

as a piece of art work which she loved. As a journalist, she writes occasionally for '' The Guardian''.

Awards and recognition

Syal won the National Student Drama Award for performing in ''One of Us'' which was written by Jacqueline Shapiro while at university. She won the

Betty Trask Award The Betty Trask Prize and Awards are for first novels written by authors under the age of 35, who reside in a current or former Commonwealth nation. Each year the awards total £20,000, with one author receiving a larger prize amount, called the ...

for her first book ''Anita and Me'' and the Media Personality of the Year award at the

Commission for Racial Equality The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom which aimed to address racial discrimination and promote racial equality. The commission was established in 1976, and disbanded in 2007 when its ...

's annual ''Race in the Media'' awards in 2000. She was given the Nazia Hassan Foundation award in 2003. In 2011–12, Syal was appointed visiting professor of contemporary theatre at

St Catherine's College, Oxford St Catherine's College (colloquially called St Catz or Catz) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford and is the newest college admitting both undergraduate and graduate students. Tracing its roots back to 1868 (although t ...

. She has an honorary degree from

SOAS, University of London SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...

and from the University of Roehampton. She received her

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

from the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the ruler ...

on 6 May 2015 at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ha ...

. In 2017, Syal was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Personal life

Syal married journalist Shekhar Bhatia in 1989; they had a daughter together before divorcing in 2002. In January 2005, Syal married her frequent collaborator,

Sanjeev Bhaskar Sanjeev Bhaskar (born 31 October 1963) is a British actor, comedian and television presenter. He is best known for his work in the BBC Two sketch comedy series '' Goodness Gracious Me'' and as the star of the sitcom ''The Kumars at No. 42''. H ...

, who plays her grandson in ''The Kumars at No. 42''; the marriage ceremony took place in

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of ...

series '' Who Do You Think You Are?'', which investigated her family history. Syal discovered that both her grandfathers were supporters of the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged from Bengal. ...

: one as a communist journalist, the other as a Punjab protester who was briefly imprisoned in the Golden Temple. In January 2011, Syal took part in the

programme ''My Teenage Diary'', discussing growing up as the only

British Asian British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British citizens of Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with 6.9% of the population identifying as Asian/Asian Bri ...

girl in a small English town, feeling overweight and unattractive. Syal's brother is investigative journalist Rajeev Syal, who covers Whitehall, writing stories for '' The Guardian''. In February 2009, Syal was one of a number of British entertainers who signed an open letter printed in '' The Times'' protesting against the

persecution of Baháʼís Persecution of Baháʼís occurs in various countries, especially in Iran, where the Baháʼí Faith originated and where one of the largest Baháʼí populations in the world is located. The origins of the persecution stem from a variety of Ba ...

in Iran.

Writing credits

Screenplays

*''

'' (1993) *''

'' (2002)

Stage

*''One of Us'' (1983) *''The Oppressed Minorities Big Fun Show'' (1992) *''Goodness Gracious Me'' (1999) *'' Bombay Dreams'' (2002)

Radio

*'' Goodness Gracious Me'' (1996–98) *''Masala FM'' (1996)

Television

*'' Tandoori Nights'' (1985) *''Black Silk'' (1985) *''

The Real McCoy "The real McCoy" is an idiom and metaphor used in much of the English-speaking world to mean "the real thing" or "the genuine article", e.g. "he's the real McCoy". The phrase has been the subject of numerous false etymologies. History The p ...

'' (1991) *''My Sister Wife'' (1994) *'' Goodness Gracious Me'' (1998) *''

Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee ''Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee'' is a three-part BBC television miniseries from 2005, adapted from Meera Syal's 1999 novel of the same name. Plot Childhood friends Tania (Laila Rouass), Sunita (Meera Syal) and Chila ( Ayesha Dharker), now in thei ...

'' (2005) *''Uncle Santa'' (UK ''

Little Crackers ''Little Crackers'' is a British Christmas comedy-drama that was broadcast on Sky1. It consists of a series of short films featuring stars of British and Irish comedy, including Stephen Fry, Catherine Tate, Chris O'Dowd, Kathy Burke, Victoria Wo ...

'' TV series) (2010)

Novels

*''

'' (1996) *''Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee'' (1999), published in German under the title ''Sari, Jeans und Chilischoten'' in 2003 *''The House of Hidden Mothers'' (2015)

Acting credits

Stage

*''One of Us'' (1983) *''

Serious Money ''Serious Money'' is a satirical play written by Caryl Churchill first staged in London in 1987. Its subject is the British stock market, specifically the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE). Often considered o ...

'' (1987) *''

Peer Gynt ''Peer Gynt'' (, ) is a five- act play in verse by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen published in 1876. Written in Norwegian, it is one of the most widely performed Norwegian plays. Ibsen believed ''Per Gynt'', the Norwegian fairy tale on wh ...

'' (1990) *''The Oppressed Minorities Big Fun Show'' (1992) *''

The Vagina Monologues ''The Vagina Monologues'' is an episodic play written in 1996 by Eve Ensler which developed and premiered at HERE Arts Center, Off-Off-Broadway in New York and was followed by an Off-Broadway run in at Westside Theatre. The play explores co ...

'' (2001) *''Bombay Dreams'' (2004) *'' Rafta, Rafta...'' (2007) *''Shirley Valentine'' (2010) *'' The Killing of Sister George'' (2011) *''

Much Ado About Nothing ''Much Ado About Nothing'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare thought to have been written in 1598 and 1599.See textual notes to ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in ''The Norton Shakespeare'' ( W. W. Norton & Company, 1997 ) p. 1387 The play ...

'' (2012) as Beatrice *'' Behind the Beautiful Forevers'' (2014) as Zehrunisa *''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

'' (2016) as Nurse *'' Annie'' (2017) as Miss Hannigan *'' Noises Off'' (2019) as Dotty Otley

Radio

*''True Believers'' (1990) *''The World As We Know It'' (1999) *'' Double Income, No Kids Yet'' (2001) *''A Small Town Murder'' (2008–2020) *''Bindi Business'' (2017) *''Gossip and Goddesses with Granny Kumar'' (2021)

Film and TV

*''Majdhar'' (1983) *'' The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 3/4'' (1985) *''

A Little Princess ''A Little Princess'' is a children's novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, first published as a book in 1905. It is an expanded version of the short story "Sara Crewe: or, What Happened at Miss Minchin's", which was serialized in '' St. Nicholas M ...

'' (1986) *''

Sammy and Rosie Get Laid ''Sammy and Rosie Get Laid'' is a 1987 British film directed by Stephen Frears, with a screenplay by Hanif Kureishi. Plot Sammy and Rosie are a married couple, both leading a promiscuous bohemian lifestyle until Sammy's father comes to visit t ...

'' (1987) *''

'' (1991) *''Gummed Labels'' (1992) *''

Taggart ''Taggart'' is a Scottish detective fiction television programme created by Glenn Chandler, who wrote many of the episodes, and made by STV Studios for the ITV network. It originally ran as the miniseries "Killer" from 6 until 20 September ...

'' (1992) *''

Sean's Show ''Sean's Show'' is a British television situation comedy, first broadcast on Channel 4 between 15 April 1992 and 29 December 1993. Stand-up comedian Sean Hughes co-wrote and starred as a fictionalised version of himself, aware that he is livin ...

'' (1993) *''

The Brain Drain The Brain Drain is a BBC comedy panel show that ran for 2 series in the early 1990s. Presented by Jimmy Mulville and featuring a panel of 4 performers (including regular panellists Tony Hawks and (in the 2nd series) Jo Brand), the show was essen ...

'' (1993) *''

Absolutely Fabulous ''Absolutely Fabulous'' (also known as ''Ab Fab'') is a British television sitcom based on the ''French and Saunders'' sketch, "Modern Mother and Daughter", created by Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. The show was created and written by Saund ...

'' (1994) *''

New Best Friend ''New Best Friend'' is a 2002 American psychological thriller film based on a story by author James Edwards. The film was originally owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which eventually lost the rights to it. Later, Sony Pictures acquired the rights to ...

'' (1994) *''Flight'' (1995) *''Degrees of Error'' (1995) *'' Band of Gold'' (1995) *''

It's Not Unusual "It's Not Unusual" is a song written by Les Reed and Gordon Mills, first recorded by a then-unknown Tom Jones, after having first been offered to Sandie Shaw. He intended it as a demo for her, but when she heard it she was so impressed with ...

'' (1995) *''

Drop The Dead Donkey ''Drop the Dead Donkey'' is a British television sitcom that was first shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom between 1990 and 1998. It is set in the offices of "GlobeLink News", a fictional TV news company. Recorded close to transmission, it ...

'' (1996) *''A Nice Arrangement'' (1996) *'' Beautiful Thing'' (1996) *''Marsala FM'' (1996) *''Crossing The Floor'' (1996) *''Ruby'' (1997) *''

Sixth Happiness ''Sixth Happiness'' is a 1997 British drama film directed by Indian director Waris Hussein. It is based on the 1991 autobiography of Firdaus Kanga entitled '' Trying to Grow''. Kanga played himself in this film about Britain, India, race and ...

'' (1997) *''

The Book Quiz ''The Book Quiz'' is a BBC Four quiz programme. The first series, first broadcast in 2007, was hosted by David Baddiel with a second 2008 series hosted by Kirsty Wark. Critical reception Rupert Christiansen, writing for The Daily Telegraph ...

'' (1998) *''No Crying He Makes'' (1998) *''Keeping Mum'' (1998) *'' Legal Affairs'' (1998) *''The World As We Know It'' (1999) *'' The Strangerers'' (2000) *'' Forgive and Forget'' (2000) *''

'' (2002) *'' Bad Girls'' (2004) Season 6 Episode 4 *''

'' (2005) *'' Murder Investigation Team'' (2005) *''

The Amazing Mrs Pritchard ''The Amazing Mrs Pritchard'' is a British drama series that aired on BBC One in 2006. Produced by Kudos, it was written by Sally Wainwright and stars Jane Horrocks in the title role of a woman with no previous political experience who becomes ...

'' (2006) *'' Jekyll'' (2007) *''

Kingdom Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

'' (2007) *''

Jhoom Barabar Jhoom ''Jhoom Barabar Jhoom'' () is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic comedy film directed by Shaad Ali and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films. Based on a story by Ali and a script by Habib Faisal, the film stars Abhishek Ba ...

'' (2007) *'' When Were We Funniest?'' (2008) *'' Beautiful People'' (2008–09) *''

'' (2009) *'' Desert Flower'' (2009) *''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'' (2009) *'' Horrible Histories'' (2009) *''

'': "

The Hungry Earth "The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode of the fifth series of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written fo ...

" (2010) and " Cold Blood" (2010) *'' Tinga Tinga Tales'' (2010) Voice of Owl *'' The Jury'' (2011) *'' Hunted'' 2 Episodes (2012) *''Bollywood Carmen Live'' (2013) *''

Absolutely Anything ''Absolutely Anything'' is a 2015 British science fantasy comedy film directed by Terry Jones, who also co-wrote it with Gavin Scott. It stars Simon Pegg, Kate Beckinsale, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Rob Riggle, Eddie Izzard and Joanna Lumley, with the voic ...

'' (2015) *'' The Brink'' (2015) *''

Broadchurch ''Broadchurch'' is a British crime drama television series broadcast on ITV for three series between 2013 and 2017. It was created by Chris Chibnall, who acted as an executive producer and wrote all 24 episodes and produced by Kudos in asso ...

'' (2015) *''

Alice Through the Looking Glass ''Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There'' (also known as ''Alice Through the Looking-Glass'' or simply ''Through the Looking-Glass'') is a novel published on 27 December 1871 (though indicated as 1872) by Lewis Carroll and the ...

'' (2016) *'' Doctor Strange'' (2016) *''

Riviera ''Riviera'' () is an Italian word which means "coastline", ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria, in the form ''Riviera ligure'', then shortened in English. The two area ...

'' (2017) *''

Paddington 2 ''Paddington 2'' is a 2017 live-action animated comedy film directed by Paul King and written by King and Simon Farnaby. Based on the stories of Paddington Bear, created by Michael Bond (to whom the film is also dedicated, Bond having died t ...

'' (2017) *'' The Split'' (2018, 2022) *''To Provide All People'' (2018) *'' Patrick'' (2018) *''

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms ''The Nutcracker and the Four Realms'' is a 2018 American fantasy adventure film directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston based on a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. It is a retelling of E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story "The Nutcracker and ...

'' (2018) *''

Nativity Rocks! ''Nativity! 4: Nativity Rocks!'' is a 2018 comedy film and the fourth instalment of the Nativity film series by Debbie Isitt. It stars Simon Lipkin, Celia Imrie, Craig Revel Horwood, Helen George, Ruth Jones & Daniel Boys and Dave Tooth. Like ...

'' (2018) *'' Yesterday'' (2019) *'' Dragon Rider'' (2020) *'' Kate & Koji'' (2020) *''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' (2021) *'' The Wheel of Time'' (2021) *'' Code 404'' (2021) *''

Back to Life (TV series) ''Back to Life'' is a British dark comedy-drama co-written by Laura Solon and Daisy Haggard and starring Haggard and Adeel Akhtar that premiered on BBC One on 15 April 2019. On 10 November 2019, the series premiered in the United States on Sh ...

'' (2021) *'' Roar'' (2022) *'' The Sandman'' (2022) *'' The Almond and the Seahorse'' (2022) *''

The Devil's Hour ''The Devil's Hour'' is a British drama thriller television series created by Tom Moran, and executive produced by Steven Moffat through his production company Hartswood Films. The series consists of six episodes, and premiered on 28 October 20 ...

'' (2022)

Academic reception

Her book ''Anita and Me'' has found its way onto school and university English syllabuses both in Britain and abroad. Scholarly literature on it includes: *Rocío G. Davis, "India in Britain: Myths of Childhood in Meera Syal's Anita and Me", in Fernando Galván & Mercedes Bengoechea (ed.), ''On Writing (and) Race in Contemporary Britain'', Universidad de Alcalá 1999, 139–46. * Ana Maria Sanchez-Arce "Invisible Cities: Being and Creativity in Meera Syal's ''Anita and Me'' and Ben Okri's ''Astonishing the Gods''", in Philip Laplace and Éric Tabuteau (eds), ''Cities on the Margin/ On the Margin of Cities: Representations of Urban Space in Contemporary British and Irish Fiction'', Besançon: Presses Universitaires Franc-Comtoises, 2003: 113–30. *Graeme Dunphy, "Meena's Mockingbird: From

to Meera Syal", in ''Neophilologus'' 88, 2004, 637–59.

References

External links

*
British Council: Meera Syal
BAFTA webcast, March 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Syal, Meera 1961 births Living people English women comedians English Hindus British actresses of Indian descent English women dramatists and playwrights English film actresses English film producers English musical theatre actresses English women novelists British Asian writers English screenwriters English television actresses English television producers British women television producers British television producers English television writers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Alumni of the University of Manchester Actors from Wolverhampton Actresses from the West Midlands (county) English people of Punjabi descent British women screenwriters British women television writers 20th-century English novelists 20th-century English women writers 20th-century English actresses Fellows of St Catherine's College, Oxford Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature 20th-century English comedians 21st-century English comedians 21st-century English actresses