Philip Begho (born 11 January 1956) is a Nigerian writer (dramatist, children's writer, novelist, short story writer, and poet), the author of more than forty books. Born in

Warri The city of Warri is an oil hub within South-South Nigeria and houses an annex of the Delta State Government House. Warri City is one of the major hubs of the petroleum industry in Nigeria. Warri and her twin city, Uvwie are the commercial c ...

, Delta State, of an

Itsekiri The Itsekiri (also called the Isekiri, ''iJekri'', ''Itsekri'', ''Ishekiri'', or Itsekhiri) are one of the Yoruboid subgroup of Nigeria's Niger Delta area, Delta State. The Itsekiris presently number 2.7 million people and live mainly in the Wa ...

father and a mother of mixed race, he received his secondary school education at King's College,

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

, and obtained an LLB. from the

University of Lagos The University of Lagos, popularly known as UNILAG, is a public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria and was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the first generation universities in Nigeria and is ranked among the top universities in th ...

and an LL.M. from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

(

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

).''Daily Times'', Lagos, Saturday, 3 December 1994, p. 17, col. 4. Though he currently works as a full-time writer, he has worked as a journalist, a banker, a businessman, a legal practitioner and a university lecturer. He has also engaged in film and

theatrical production A theatrical production is any work of theatre, such as a staged play, musical, comedy or drama produced from a written book or script. Theatrical productions also extend to other performance designations such as Dramatic and Nondramatic theatre, a ...

.''Daily Sun'', Lagos, Tuesday, 30 May 2006, p.21, col.1 His dramatic writing cuts across film, television, radio and the stage, and several of his stage plays have won awards. He also writes songs and non-fiction works, and his law book ''Company Formation: Precedents on Objects of Incorporation'' has gone into several editions.

Biography

Early life

Part of Philip Begho's elementary education was received at Grange School,

Ikeja Ikeja is the capital city of Lagos State in southwestern Nigeria. Its population, as of the 2006 census, is 313,196. Prior to the emergence of military rule in the early 1980s, Ikeja was a well planned, clean and quiet residential and commercia ...

, Lagos, but when his father, who had been a chief magistrate at Ikeja, was transferred to

Benin City Benin City is the capital and largest city of Edo State, Edo State, Nigeria. It is the fourth-largest city in Nigeria according to the 2006 census, after Lagos, Kano (city), Kano, and Ibadan, with a population estimate of about 3,500,000 as of ...

and subsequently appointed a judge in the newly created Mid-Western Region, he continued his elementary education there at Emotan Private School. In 1967 he was admitted to King's College, Lagos and began writing at the age of eleven for the two school publications – ''The Searchlight'' and ''The Mermaid''. He was highly adventurous during his middle-school years, and at the age of thirteen he got lost while exploring a path in the bush and claimed to have seen very strange things, which might have contributed to the cast of mind that spawned his children fantasies in later years. He represented his school and

Lagos State Lagos State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Èkó) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West (Nigeria), southwestern Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, states, it is both the List of Nigerian states by population, most populous and List of Nigerian state ...

in athletic competitions, excelling in the high jump and pole vault events, and was appointed vice-school captain in his final year. Finishing school, he worked as a reporter for the ''

Nigerian Observer ''The Nigerian Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. It has been published since 29 May 1968. The publisher, Bendel Newspapers Company Limited, is owned by the Edo State Government. In 1973, a correspondent ...

'' before commencing undergraduate studies in law in 1974 at the University of Lagos. In 1975 he won a scholarship for academic performance and was on the Dean's List in 1976, before graduating with honours in 1977. He was admitted to the

Nigerian Law School The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up by the Government of Nigeria in 1962 to provide a Nigerian legal education to foreign-trained lawyers, and to provide practical training for aspiring Legal Practitioners in Nigeria. ...

in Lagos and was called to the bar in 1978.

Early career

A few months after his call to the bar in 1978, Philip Begho was drafted into the

National Youth Service Corps The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is a program set up by the Nigerian government during the military regime to involve Nigerian graduates in nation-building and the development of the country. There is no military conscription in Nigeria, ...

and posted to Jos in

Plateau State Plateau State is the twelfth-largest Nigerian state. It is in the centre of the country includes a range of hills surrounding the Jos Plateau, its capital, and the entire plateau itself. Plateau State is described as "The Home of Peace and To ...

, where his primary assignment was as a researcher in the Police Staff College at Bukuru. During the one-year programme, he started to have serious doubts about pursuing a career in a profession he was beginning to find creatively restrictive. But if not law, what? His

dilemma A dilemma ( grc-gre, δίλημμα "double proposition") is a problem offering two possibilities, neither of which is unambiguously acceptable or preferable. The possibilities are termed the ''horns'' of the dilemma, a clichéd usage, but disti ...

grew, and he decided to write a poem about it. As he finished and held the poem in his hand, it struck him that he was holding the "what?" Of course you couldn't make a career of poetry, not unless you were a known master

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

, but you could make one of creative writing as a novelist, so a novelist he decided to be. But the imperatives of earning a living meant he first had to take up a job, so when in 1979 he was invited to join the

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

of a former lecturer of his, he readily agreed. While working there, he moonlighted as a businessman in the hope that he would make enough money to obtain the freedom to do what he really desired. But not finding such good fortune, he accepted a place in 1980 to study at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

, for an

LL.M A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

. He had worked only a year at the law firm in Lagos, but his time there was so successful that he received an offer to return to the firm as a junior partner. But when he received his master's degree in 1981, he took up a job with Citibank N.A. and was sent to

Glyfada Glyfada ( el, Γλυφάδα, ) is a suburb in South Athens located in the Athens Riviera along the Athens coast. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens' Urban Area. The area stretches from the foot of the Hymettus mountain to the Sar ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

as a trainee manager. The job was very lucrative, but the time to write a novel, which he hadn't found at LSE, he still couldn't find at Citibank. Nor did he find it when he returned to Nigeria in 1982 and assumed a lectureship at the University of Benin. In 1983 he quit the teaching appointment and, living on saved funds, he began to write. He completed three novels before his money ran out, and two of them – ''Alero: of Dreams... '' and ''The Lecturer’s Dilemma'' – were accepted for publication by African Universities Press. But they never got published and the reason given was that the startling berserk trend the economy had taken couldn't sustain books other than text books. Out of funds, he thought it prudent to return to law, and so to Lagos he went to set up his own law firm. He practised law from 1984 until he relocated temporarily in 1987 to the UK But before he left he had written and published the first edition of ''Company Formation: Precedents on Objects of Incorporation''. This was in 1986.

Writing career

From the moment he set foot in London in July 1987, the lawyer in Philip Begho disappeared. In its place was a new person, one who saw that if the dream of writing, which had died in many, was not to die in him, he would have to sacrifice his academic and professional qualifications and sustain himself doing menial jobs that would free him to write. So, engaging in cleaning jobs that lasted only a few hours in the evenings, he toiled away in the afternoons in libraries, training for a writing career. Late in 1988, not having been able to write a play before, he was moved to begin the play ''Esther''. The research and plotting took him two years, and it was not until the beginning of 1991 that he was ready to start the dialogue. The ability to write in verse, long desired, miraculously came upon him he claims, and he was able to write the dialogue in verse that has been described as sure-footed and graceful in tone. ''Esther'' was completed in December 1991 and by 15 March 1992 Philip Begho had returned to Nigeria. Riding the tiger-back of the power outages and social unrest that characterised Lagos in 1993, he started and completed ''Daniel'', another verse play. ''Esther'' and ''Daniel'' were entered in manuscript form for the coveted

Association of Nigerian Authors The Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) is a non-profit organization that promotes Nigerian literature. It represents Nigerian creative writers at home and abroad. It was founded in 1981 by Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe as its president. The ...

(ANA) Drama Prize in 1994, and ''Esther'' won while ''Daniel'' came second. But it was ''Daniel'', rather than ''Esther'', which was first produced, being replete with themes that gave voice to the people's struggle in the Abacha years. It was staged to critical acclaim at the University of Lagos and at Nigeria's prestigious MUSON Centre in December 1994.''Sunday Times'', Lagos, 20 November 1994, p. 15. The cast featured such leading lights of the Nigerian stage as

Joke Silva Joke Silva , MFR is a Nigerian actress, director, and businesswoman. In 1998 she had a major role, starring opposite Colin Firth and Nia Long in the British-Canadian film ''The Secret Laughter of Women''. In 2006, she won "Best Actress in a Le ...

, Ayo Lijadu and Ihria Enakimio,''THISDAY'', Lagos, Tuesday, 19 November 2002, p. 51, col. 1. and since then there have been several re-runs. ''Daniel'' (aka ''Power of Lions'') was published in 2001 and ''Esther'' followed in 2002. Also published in 2002 was Philip Begho's third play, ''Job's Wife'', another verse play. ''Job's Wife'' won the 2002 Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) Drama Prize. But Philip Begho does not only write stage plays. He has written for television, radio and film, and is writing more novels these days. His novel ''Songbird'' worn the 2003 Isidore Okpewho Prose Prize and was short-listed for the 2004 Nigeria Prize for Literature. His children's book ''Aunty Felicia'' won the 2003 ANA/Matatu Prize for Children's Literature, while ''Aunty Felicia Returns'' won the 2005 ANA/Atiku Abubakar Children's Literature Prize.

Themes and style

Philip Begho's awareness of the profound influence the literary and dramatic arts have in shaping societal values is evident in his work, and his fiction, whether for adults or for children, is thematically preoccupied with such virtues as truth, righteousness and justice and their place in combating societal ills. One critic has in fact gone as far as saying that he uses creative literature to bring people closer to God. As for style, Philip Begho, even in his prose, embraces drama with a strong appetite, and his stories and plots do not shy away from the sensational, thus lighting up the face of serious issues. Nor is he averse to mixing prose with poetry and soaring away on lyrical flights, while keeping a good rein on his story-telling. His verse, a medium not familiar perhaps to the average person, is verse executed in a simple, lucid and entertaining way.

Life outside writing

Philip Begho is an Evangelical Christian who claims to have had an encounter with Christ Jesus that turned his life around in 1986. He is quick to attribute the direction of his work and its volume to divine guidance and help. When not writing he engages in Christian counselling and career coaching and makes time to run play-and-learn groups for children. He enjoys the theatre, movies, music, dancing, walking, tennis,

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

and swimming.

Bibliography

Drama

#''Daniel'' (aka ''Power of Lions''; Lagos: Monarch Books, 2001) #''Esther'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2002) #''

Job's Wife Job's wife is an unnamed biblical figure mentioned in the Book of Job. Biblical narrative Job's wife appears only in chapter 2, when Job is afflicted with sores. She says to him in verse 9, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and di ...

'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2002) #''Titi Rella'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2004) #''Jephthah’s Daughter'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2006) #''Leopard Woman'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Traffic Jam Kids'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Solomon'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Joseph'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Nebuchadnezzar'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Jael'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Born King'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Predator'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 2: When Should I Marry? '' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 3: The Rubbishians'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 4: The Marriage Seminar'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 5: The Beggar'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 6: The Sandwich'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 7: Five Storybooks'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 8: Two-Way Street'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 9: World Peace Day'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 10: School Daze'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 11: The NEPA Statue'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Smallie 12: True Democracy'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010)

Prose

#''Songbird'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2002) #''Strange World'' (A collection of short stories; Lagos: Monarch Books, 2004) #''Jelly Baby'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2004) #''Aunty Felicia'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2003) #''Aunty Felicia Returns'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2005) #''Aunty Felicia Goes to Yankari'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Aunty Felicia Goes to School'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Aunty Felicia in the Evil Forest'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Aunty Felicia Goes to Church'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''King Omatosan'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Chuma the Terror'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010) #''Crab Story'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2010)

Poetry

*''Tulip of the Nile'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2003)

Non-fiction

#''Company Formation: Precedents on Objects of Incorporation'' (1986; Lagos: Monarch Books, 1993, 2003, 2009) #''Tongues Aflame'' (Lagos: Monarch Books, 2003)

Awards and prizes

#Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) Drama Prize 1994 #Lire en Fête Short Story 1st Prize 2001''The Post Express'', Lagos, Sunday, 16 December 2001, p.24, col.1 #ANA/NDDC JP Clark-Bekederemo Prize for Drama 2002 #ANA/Matatu Prize for Children's Literature 2003 #Isidore Okpewho Prose Prize 2003 #ANA/Atiku Abubakar Prize for Children's Literature 2005

References

External links

In celebration of child’s play
{{DEFAULTSORT:Begho, Philip 1956 births Living people People from Warri Itsekiri people Nigerian dramatists and playwrights Nigerian children's writers Nigerian male novelists Nigerian male short story writers Nigerian short story writers Nigerian screenwriters Nigerian songwriters Nigerian male poets 20th-century Nigerian lawyers King's College, Lagos alumni University of Lagos alumni Alumni of the London School of Economics 21st-century Nigerian novelists 21st-century short story writers 21st-century male writers 21st-century Nigerian poets 21st-century screenwriters African poets