Shane Cullinan is a composer, arranger and lyricist whose work ranges from compositions for TV and film to orchestral dramas and opera.

Life and career

Cullinan has worked independently as a composer and arranger since graduating from

Nottingham Trent University Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as a new university in 1992, although its roots go back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design, w ...

. His focus for composition for string quartet came in the form of a residency at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

, New Jersey and featured on his first commercial recording, ''Y=-X2''. His film credits include the music to ''Insight In Mind'', ''The Nuclear Train'' and ''The Silent Train'', all for

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

. His score to ''Insight In Mind'', a short film about mental illness, was screened at the

National Film Theatre BFI Southbank (from 1951 to 2007, known as the National Film Theatre) is the leading repertory cinema in the UK, specialising in seasons of classic, independent and non-English language films. It is operated by the British Film Institute. Hist ...

, London, in 2003. His first orchestral drama, ''The Pieta'', had its world premiere in

St James's Church, Piccadilly St James's Church, Piccadilly, also known as St James's Church, Westminster, and St James-in-the-Fields, is an Anglican church on Piccadilly in the centre of London, United Kingdom. The church was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren. T ...

, London in May 2009, featuring actor

Frances Barber Frances Barber (née Brookes, born 13 May 1958) is an English actress. She received Olivier Award nominations for her work in the plays '' Camille'' (1985), and ''Uncle Vanya'' (1997). Her film appearances include three collaborations with Gar ...

as the narrator with a subsequent cast recording being commercially released through Cayos Records.The work was revived for a performance at

Royal Northern College of Music The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in Manchester, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. In addition to being a centre of music education ...

in 2017 The text and score to his work ''The Magpie'' was the inspiration behind the play, ''Dirty Pretty Secrets'', which premiered at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

in 2004. Cullinan works with his orchestral collective, Tonic Fold, who have released three albums since 2002. They include ''Numbers Rush By'' which was released in January 2008 and won the Overplay Songwriters Award 2008 and was shortlisted for the UK Songwriters Awards 2008. His album, ''The Violent Language of Portraits'', features guest artists

Kathy Burke Katherine Lucy Bridget Burke (born 13 June 1964) is an English actress, comedian, writer, producer, and director. She achieved fame with her appearances on sketch shows such as ''French and Saunders'' (1988–1999) and her recurring role as Mag ...

David McAlmont David Irving McAlmont (born 2 May 1967) is a British vocalist, essayist and art historian. He came to prominence in the 1990s as a singer, particularly through his collaboration with Bernard Butler. In the 2010s he returned to academia, working ...

Chris New Chris New (born 17 August 1981) is an English film and stage actor best known for his starring role in the 2011 film '' Weekend''. New made his screen writing and directorial debut in 2013 with the short film ''Ticking''. He co-wrote the 2014 i ...

Rachel Tucker Rachel Kelly Tucker (born 29 May 1981) is a Northern Irish West End and Broadway actress, best known for her portrayal of Elphaba in the hit musical '' Wicked''. She most recently starred in Come from Away on Broadway, having originated the role ...

and Tom Parsons and is being released in late 2012. Cullinan has continued to work for theatre and film and on projects with the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

, The Urban Culture Project, Tonic Fold, Cargem Theatre, Hanby & Barrett, and Channel 4. In 2017 he was appointed as composer and musical director for the prolific West-End production of

Lady Windermere's Fan ''Lady Windermere's Fan, A Play About a Good Woman'' is a four-act comedy by Oscar Wilde, first performed on Saturday, 20 February 1892, at the St James's Theatre in London. The story concerns Lady Windermere, who suspects that her husband i ...

directed by

starring

Jennifer Saunders Jennifer Jane Saunders (born 6 July 1958) is an English actress, comedian, singer and screenwriter. Saunders originally found attention in the 1980s, when she became a member of The Comic Strip after graduating from the Royal Central School of ...

Samantha Spiro Samantha Spiro (born 20 June 1968) is an English actress and singer. She is best known for portraying Barbara Windsor in the stage play '' Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick'' and the television films ''Cor, Blimey!'' and ''Babs'', DI Vivien F ...

Kevin Bishop Kevin Brian Bishop (born 18 June 1980) is a British actor, comedian, and writer. He is best known for his roles as Jim Hawkins in ''Muppet Treasure Island'', Stupid Brian in ''My Family'', and Nigel Norman Fletcher in the 2016 revival of ''Porr ...

and

Joseph Marcell Joseph Marcell (born 18 August 1948) is a British actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Geoffrey Butler, the butler on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' from September 1990 until the show ended in May 1996. Born in S ...

, produced by

Dominic Dromgoole Dominic Dromgoole (born 25 October 1963)DROMGOOLE, Dominic Charles Flemi ...

Classic Spring Company at

Vaudeville Theatre The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on the Strand in the City of Westminster. As the name suggests, the theatre held mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. It opened in 1870 and was rebuilt twice, although each ...

London.

Discography

Albums

* ''Y=-X2'' - Shane Cullinan (EP) * ''The Beachcomber'' - Shane Cullinan (1997) * ''Letter to East'' - Shane Cullinan (1999) * ''Demonstration'' – Shane Cullinan (2000) * ''The Run'' - Tonic Fold (2002) (EP) * ''The Magdalens'' - Tonic Fold (2003) * ''Numbers Rush By'' – Tonic Fold (2007) * ''The Pieta'' - Shane Cullinan (2009) * ''The Violent Language of Portraits'' - Tonic Fold (2013)

Theatre

* ''Lady Windermere's Fan'', Director Kathy Burke, Vaudeville Theatre London * ''The Acid Circus'', Castlegate Hall in Nottingham and Town Hall Manchester * ''Dirty Pretty Secrets'', Edinburgh Festival Fringe * ''Anthony on a Bench on a Hill'', in pre-production

Opera

* ''Tacitly Type Tabes'', Bonnington Gallery, Nottingham * ''The Pieta'', St James's Church, Piccadilly, London & RNCM Manchester

Film/TV

* ''Becca's Earth'' (Soundtrap/Channel 4 pilot) * ''The Nuclear Train'' (Channel 4, Animate! series) * ''Insight In Mind'' (Swings And Roundabouts in association with

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

)

Discography

Albums

*''Y=-X2'' - Shane Cullinan (1997) (EP) *''The Beachcomber'' - Shane Cullinan (1997) *''Letter to East'' - Shane Cullinan (1999) *''Demonstration'' – Shane Cullinan (2000) *''The Run'' - Tonic Fold (2002) (EP) *''The Magdalens'' - Tonic Fold (2003) *''Numbers Rush By'' – Tonic Fold (2007) *''The Pieta'' - Shane Cullinan (2009) *''The Violent Language of Portraits'' - Tonic Fold (2013)

Theatre

*''The Acid Circus'', Castlegate Hall in Nottingham and Town Hall Manchester, 1998 *''Dirty Pretty Secrets'', Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2008 *''Anthony on a Bench on a Hill'', in pre-production, 2013 *''Up The Garden Path'', in collaboration with Tim Benzie and Paul Joseph, in pre-production, 2013

Opera

*''Tacitly Type Tabes'', Bonnington Gallery, Nottingham, 1999 *''The Pieta'', St James's Church, Piccadilly, London, 2008

Film/TV

*''Becca's Earth'' (Soundtrap/Channel 4 pilot), 2006 *''The Nuclear Train'' (Channel 4, Animate! series), 2004 *''Insight In Mind'' (Swings And Roundabouts in association with

), 2003

External links

Shane Cullinan's official website

Shane Cullinan on Soundcloud

The Times Interview

Review of Tonic Fold

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cullinan, Shane 1975 births British composers Alumni of Nottingham Trent University Living people