Segun Akinola (born 1993) is an English composer for television and documentaries. He took over from

Murray Gold Murray Jonathan Gold (born 28 February 1969) is an English composer for stage, film, and television and a dramatist for both theatre and radio. He is best known as the musical director and composer of the music for ''Doctor Who'' from 2005, unt ...

as the director and composer of the music for ''

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 ...

'' from "

The Woman Who Fell To Earth "The Woman Who Fell to Earth" is the first episode of the eleventh series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. It was written by new head writer and executive producer Chris Chibnall, directed by Jamie Childs, and ...

" in 2018 until "

The Power of the Doctor "The Power of the Doctor" is the third and final of the 2022 specials of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', and was broadcast on BBC One on 23 October 2022. The episode was ordered for the occasion of the 100th anni ...

" in 2022.

Early life

Akinola has British-Nigerian heritage. As a child he learned to play piano and drums. He is an alumnus of

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in The Harpur Trust, born from the endowments left by Sir William Harpur in the six ...

, and the

Royal Birmingham Conservatoire The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire is a music school, drama school and concert venue in Birmingham, England. It provides professional education in music, acting, and related disciplines up to postgraduate level. It is a centre for scholarly res ...

, from where he graduated with first-class honours in 2014. He subsequently obtained an MA in Composing for Film and Television, at the

National Film and Television School The National Film and Television School (NFTS) is a film, television and games school established in 1971 and based at Beaconsfield Studios in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England. It is featured in the 2021 ranking by ''The Hollywood Repor ...

Work

''Doctor Who''

On 26 June 2018, ''

'' executive producer

Chris Chibnall Christopher Antony Chibnall (born 21 March 1970) is an English television writer and producer, best known as the creator and writer of the award-winning ITV mystery-crime drama ''Broadchurch'' and as a showrunner of the long-running BBC sci- ...

announced that the musical score for the eleventh series of the programme would be provided by Akinola. Akinola returned to compose for the twelfth and thirteenth series, as well as the 2022 specials. On 20 July 2022, Akinola announced that he had made the decision to depart alongside Chris Chibnall and

Jodie Whittaker Jodie Whittaker (born 17 June 1982) is an English actress who is best known for portraying the thirteenth incarnation of the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' (2017–2022) and as Beth Latimer in ''Broadchurch'' (2013–2017). She came to prominence ...

, and that "

" would be his last episode as composer for the show.

Recognition

He was named a BAFTA Breakthrough Brit in 2017. His "Dear Mr Shakespeare" score was given an Honourable Mention in the 2017 BSO Jerry Goldsmith Award for Best Original Score for a Short Film. In 2019, Segun Akinola received a nomination at the

Screen Nation Awards The Screen Nation Film & TV Awards, formerly the bfm (black filmmaker) Film and TV Awards, was founded in September 2003 by independent film producer Charles Thompson MBE, as a platform to raise the profile of black British and international fil ...

in the "Rising Star" category. He was nominated for his work on '' Black and British: A Forgotten History'', ''

'', and ''Wonders of the Moon''.

Personal life

Akinola lives in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

Music

References

External links

BAFTA profile
including video of Akinola speaking * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Akinola, Segun 1993 births Living people 21st-century British composers Alumni of Birmingham Conservatoire Alumni of the National Film and Television School English people of Nigerian descent English film score composers English male film score composers English male composers English television composers Music based on Doctor Who People educated at Bedford Modern School Place of birth missing (living people)