Frank Cottrell-Boyce facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Frank Cottrell-Boyce
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Cottrell-Boyce at the 2015 Berlin International Literature Festival
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| Born | 23 September 1959 Bootle, England |
| Occupation | Scriptwriter, author |
| Alma mater | Keble College, Oxford |
| Period | c. 1984–present |
| Genre | Screenplays, children's novels |
| Notable awards | Carnegie Medal 2004 Guardian Prize 2012 |
| Spouse | Denise Cottrell |
| Children | 7 |
Frank Cottrell-Boyce (born 23 September 1959) is a famous British author and screenwriter. He is best known for writing popular children's books and for working with movie director Michael Winterbottom.
He became well-known for writing the amazing opening ceremony for the 2012 Summer Olympics. He also wrote official sequels to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car, a classic children's story by Ian Fleming.
Cottrell-Boyce has won two of the biggest British awards for children's books. In 2004, he won the Carnegie Medal for his book Millions. In 2012, he won the Guardian Prize for The Unforgotten Coat. In July 2024, he was named the new Children's Laureate, an honor given to outstanding children's writers.
Contents
Personal Life and Education
Frank Cottrell-Boyce was born in 1959 in Bootle, a town near Liverpool, England. He grew up in a Catholic family and later moved to Rainhill. As a child, he loved reading the Moomins books, which greatly inspired him.
He studied English at Keble College, Oxford, and even earned a doctorate degree there. At Oxford, he met his wife, Denise Cottrell. They married in the Keble College chapel and have seven children together. One of their sons, Aidan Cottrell-Boyce, is also a writer.
Cottrell-Boyce is a patron for the Insight Film Festival. A patron is a person who supports an organization. This festival in Manchester helps bring people from different faiths together. He is also a strong supporter of reading aloud and works with a charity called The Reader Organisation.
Writing Career
From Screenplays to Novels
Cottrell-Boyce began his career writing for television shows, including the popular British soap operas Brookside and Coronation Street.
He later started writing for movies. He worked with director Michael Winterbottom on several films, such as Welcome to Sarajevo and 24 Hour Party People. He has also worked with other famous directors like Danny Boyle on the movie version of Millions.
His first children's novel, Millions, was actually a movie script first. The book was so successful that it won the Carnegie Medal, which is awarded by librarians for the best children's book of the year in the U.K.
Famous Works for Children
After the success of Millions, Cottrell-Boyce wrote more popular books for young readers. His novel Framed was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children's Book Award. He later adapted it into a BBC television movie. His book Cosmic was also shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal.
In 2011, he was chosen to write a sequel to Ian Fleming's famous book, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. His book was called Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again, and he wrote two more sequels after that.
Another award-winning book is The Unforgotten Coat. The story is about a friendship between two children from different cultures. It was inspired by a real girl from Mongolia that he met. The book won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize in 2012.
The Olympics and Doctor Who
One of Cottrell-Boyce's most famous projects was writing the opening ceremony for the London 2012 Summer Olympics. He worked with director Danny Boyle to create a story for the show based on William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.
He has also written for the popular science-fiction show Doctor Who. He wrote the episodes "In the Forest of the Night" in 2014 and "Smile" in 2017.
List of Novels
- Millions (2004)
- Framed (2005)
- Cosmic (2008)
- Desirable (2008)
- The Unforgotten Coat (2011)
- Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again (2011)
- Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the Race Against Time (2012)
- Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Over the Moon (2013)
- The Astounding Broccoli Boy (2015)
- Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth (2016)
- Runaway Robot (2019)
- Noah's Gold (2021)
Selected Writing Credits
Here are some of the well-known movies and TV shows Frank Cottrell-Boyce has written for.
Television
- Brookside (1987–1989)
- Coronation Street (1991–1995)
- God on Trial (2008)
- Framed (2009)
- London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony (2012)
- Doctor Who (2014, 2017)
Film
- Welcome to Sarajevo (1997)
- Hilary and Jackie (1998)
- 24 Hour Party People (2002)
- Millions (2004)
- The Railway Man (2013)
- Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017)
- Kensuke's Kingdom (2023)
