John Preston (born 1953) is an English journalist and novelist. He is the author of books and screenplays which became successful films on Netflix ('' The Dig'' with

Ralph Fiennes Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Ralph Fiennes, various accolades, including a British Academy Film ...

Lily James Lily Chloe Ninette Thomson (born 5 April 1989), known professionally as Lily James, is an English actress. She studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and began her career in the British television series '' Just Wi ...

and

Carey Mulligan Carey Hannah Mulligan (born 28 May 1985) is a British actress. She has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and a Tony Award. She w ...

) and award-winning series on BBC ('' A Very English Scandal'' with

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as a charming and vulnerable romantic leading man, and has since transitioned into a character actor. He has received List of awards ...

) and on ITV ('' Stonehouse'', with

Matthew Macfadyen David Matthew Macfadyen (; born 17 October 1974) is an English actor. Known for his performances on stage and screen, he Breakthrough role, gained prominence for his role as Mr. Darcy in Joe Wright's ''Pride & Prejudice (2005 film), Pride & Prej ...

Career

John Preston attended

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

from 1967 to 1971. He worked as the Arts Editor of ''

The Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free of charge in London, England. It is print ...

'' and ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, first published on 5 February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Tele ...

''. He was ''The Sunday Telegraph''s television critic for ten years and one of its chief feature writers. Preston wrote four novels between 1996 and 2007. All are set in England in the recent past: ''Ghosting'' in the world of radio and television in the 1950s; ''Ink'' in the dying days of

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a street in Central London, England. It runs west to east from Temple Bar, London, Temple Bar at the boundary of the City of London, Cities of London and City of Westminster, Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the Lo ...

's importance in journalism in the 1980s; ''Kings of the Roundhouse'' in strife-torn London in the 1970s; and '' The Dig'' in the 1930s. Preston wrote ''The Dig'', a novelised account of the

Sutton Hoo Sutton Hoo is the site of two Anglo-Saxon cemeteries dating from the 6th to 7th centuries near Woodbridge, Suffolk, England. Archaeology, Archaeologists have been excavating the area since 1938, when an undisturbed ship burial containing a wea ...

archaeological dig, after discovering that his aunt had been one of the key participants. ''The Dig'' has been made into a feature film starring

, and

, released on Netflix in 2021. '' A Very English Scandal'', Preston's non-fiction account of the Jeremy Thorpe affair of the 1970s, was adapted into a

television miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

starring

and

Ben Whishaw Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Ben Whishaw, various accolades, including three British Academy Television Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...

in 2018. His 2020 non-fiction book, ''Fall: The Mystery of

Robert Maxwell Ian Robert Maxwell (born Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch; 10 June 1923 – 5 November 1991) was a Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak-born British media proprietor, politician and fraudster. After escaping the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, ...

'', won the Costa Book Award for biographies in 2021, and is being adapted for television by

Working Title A working title is a preliminary name for a product or project. The usage is especially common in film and TV, gaming, music and publishing. It is often styled in trade publications as (wt) and is synonymous with production title and tentative ...

. In 2022, Preston authored the script for '' Stonehouse'', a television series biography of disgraced politician

John Stonehouse John Thomson Stonehouse (28 July 192514 April 1988) was a British Labour and Co-operative Party politician, businessman and minister who was a member of the Cabinet under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. He is remembered for his unsuccessful atte ...

. Preston's most recent book, ''Watford Forever'', examining the takeover of

Watford F.C. Watford Football Club is a professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The team played at several grounds in their early history, includ ...

Sir Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

and written in collaboration with John himself, was published in November 2023. In 2022 Preston worked as the screenwriter on ''Runners'', a television drama series about the

Bow Street Runners The Bow Street Runners were the law enforcement officers of the Bow Street Magistrates' Court in the City of Westminster. They have been called London's first professional police force. The force originally numbered six men and was founded in 1 ...

, and in late 2023 he worked on a mini-series based on

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth da ...

's short-lived tenure as

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, entitled ''49 Days''.

Critical assessments

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' reviewer of ''Ink'' said, "With a rare gift for both humour and desolation, Preston is a brilliant new player in the field of serious comedy." Reviewing ''Kings of the Roundhouse'' in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Harry Ritchie called it "that unusual thing – an intelligent comic novel that really is very funny". The Labour politician

Chris Mullin Christopher Paul Mullin (born July 30, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player, executive and coach. He is a five time NBA All-Star and four time All-NBA Team member. He is also two-time Olympic Gold medalist and a two-time ...

said ''A Very English Scandal'' was "probably the most forensic, elegantly written and compelling account of one of the 20th century's great political scandals ... a real page-turner" and an "entertaining mix of tragedy and farce". ''

s reviewer of ''Fall'' praised Preston's "great skill at exposing hypocrisy and subterfuge" and his "eye for the telling detail and an ear for the revealing quote".

Family

Preston lives in London. He is married to journalist and bridge columnist Susanna Gross and his brother-in law is political commentator Tom Gross.

Books

* ''Touching the Moon'' (1991; non-fiction, about a trip to the Mountains of the Moon in

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

) * ''Ghosting'' (1996; novel) * ''Ink'' (1999; novel) * ''Kings of the Roundhouse'' (2006; novel) * '' The Dig'' (2007; novel) * '' A Very English Scandal: Sex, Lies and a Murder Plot at the Heart of the Establishment'' (2016; non-fiction, on the Jeremy Thorpe affair) * ''Fall: The Mystery of

'' (2020; non-fiction) * ''Watford Forever'' (with Sir Elton John; 2023; non-fiction)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Preston, John 1953 births Living people 20th-century English novelists 21st-century English novelists People educated at Marlborough College English male non-fiction writers English male novelists English male journalists English male television writers 20th-century English journalists 20th-century English non-fiction writers 21st-century English non-fiction writers 20th-century English male writers 21st-century British male writers 21st-century English screenwriters