George Kay (writer)

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George Kay is an English television writer, screenwriter, and producer. [1] He is best known as the creator of the Netflix series Lupin and Criminal , the Apple TV+ thriller Hijack , and ITV's The Long Shadow . He has also worked on the shows Litvinenko , Stag , My Mad Fat Diary , The Hour , The Tunnel , and the first season of Killing Eve . [2] [3]

Contents

Early life

Whilst a teenage student at Wellington College, Berkshire, Kay met director Jim Field Smith, with whom he often collaborates. [4]

Career

Kay began his career in non-scripted entertainment, serving as head of development at Twenty Twenty Television and head of factual at Blast! Films, where he co-created productions such as The Choir , Evacuation , and The Sorcerer's Apprentice . [5]

Kay became a full-time writer in 2009, after he won the Brit List with his feature script Good Luck Anthony Belcher. [6] He went on to write episodes of The Hour for the BBC, The Tunnel for Sky, and two episodes of the first season of Killing Eve .

Whilst writing the script for Litvinenko , Kay had access to transcripts of Alexander Litvinenko's eighteen hours of deathbed interviews with the London Metropolitan Police. [7] Litvinenko's widow, Marina, and the Metropolitan Police supported the production of the series. [8] The show has been sold to over eighty international territories. [9]

Production on his Apple TV+ series The Wanted Man , starring Hugh Laurie, took place in London in May and June 2025. [10] [11]

Filmography

YearTitleWriterCreatorExecutive
producer
Notes
2012 The Hour YesNoNoEpisode "Honey Trap"
2013 The Tunnel YesNoNoEpisode 1.6
2014 Our Zoo YesNoNoEpisode 1.3
2015 My Mad Fat Diary YesNoNo3 episodes
2016 Stag YesYesYesCo-created and written with Jim Field Smith
2018 Killing Eve YesNoNo2 episodes
2019–2020 Criminal YesYesYesCo-created with Jim Field Smith
2021–present Lupin YesYesYes
2022 Litvinenko YesNoYes
2023 The Long Shadow YesYesYes
2023–present Hijack YesYesYesCo-created with Jim Field Smith
TBA The Wanted Man YesYesYes [12]
War YesYesYes [13]

References

  1. "George Kay, Meet the Writers 322 – Radio". Monocle. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  2. "George Kay". Variety. 26 April 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  3. "Speakers | George Kay". London Screenwriters' Festival 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  4. "George Kay, Meet the Writers 322 – Radio". Monocle. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  5. "George Kay". londonscreenwritersfestival.com. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  6. "Good Luck Anthony Belcher tops Brit list of unmade scripts". theguardian.com. 5 October 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  7. Willix, Pierra (8 December 2022). "Litvinenko writer admits Alexander's wife watching ITVX drama is 'nerve-racking'". Metro. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  8. "Litvinenko writer explains change of lead actor and genre each episode". Radio Times. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  9. Foreman, Liza (17 October 2022). "ITV Studios Sells 'Litvinenko' to 80-Plus Territories". Variety. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  10. Calnan, Ellie (25 June 2025). "2025 film and high-end TV productions shooting in the UK and Ireland: latest updates". screendaily.com. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  11. Munden, Katherine (12 May 2025). "Hugh Laurie begins UK shoot on Apple TV+'s The Wanted Man". Theknowledgeonline. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  12. Shafer, Ellise (7 May 2025). "Hugh Laurie to Lead Apple TV+ Thriller 'The Wanted Man' Alongside Thandiwe Newton and Fionn Whitehead". Variety. Retrieved 27 October 2025.
  13. White, Peter (20 August 2025). "Dominic West & Sienna Miller to Star in Legal Thriller War for HBO & Sky from George Kay". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 October 2025.