Neil Cross

Neil Cross (born 2 September 1969) is a British novelist and scriptwriter.

Life and career

Cross was born in Bristol on 2 September 1969. His initial career was solely as a novelist, beginning with Mr In-Between, which was published in 1998 (and adapted into a film in 2001).

He later diversified into television, writing an episode of the BBC spy drama Spooks in 2006 before becoming lead writer on the sixth and seventh series of the show. He has also written for The Fixer and Doctor Who ("The Rings of Akhaten" and "Hide"). In 2010 he wrote a new adaptation of Whistle and I'll Come to You, from the story by M. R. James.

He has created two television series: BBC crime thriller Luther (for which he wrote all the episodes); and Crossbones, an action adventure pirate series for NBC (co-created with James V. Hart and Amanda Welles). Cross also co-wrote the screenplay for the 2013 film Mama.

He has continued to write novels, including Always the Sun, which was long-listed for the Booker Prize, Burial and Captured; and has written a memoir Heartland, which was short-listed for the PEN/Ackerley Prize for literary autobiography of excellence. His most recent novel, Luther: The Calling, was published in 2011.